Horror-crash victim thought he was going to die in flames

Bangor Erris man found guilty of careless driving

A MAN who suffered two broken knee caps and a broken leg in a traffic accident described how he thought he was going to die as he struggled to escape his burning van.
The horrific incident was recalled by Kerryman Declan O’Connor while giving evidence at the trial of Brendan Hegarty, who was found guilty of careless driving at last week’s sitting of Castlebar Circuit Court.
Mr Hegarty, an electrical contractor from Bangor Erris was found not guilty by the jury of the more serious charge of dangerous driving causing serious bodily harm to Mr O’Connor. The traffic accident occurred on October 14, 2013, along the N59 at Quignalecka, Ballina.

Impact
The jury heard that a near head-on collision took place involving a Volkswagen Transporter van, driven by Mr Hegarty, and a Ford Transit van, driven by Mr O’Connor, approximately 2.3km out the road, on the Sligo side of Ballina town.
As a result of the impact, the two vans ended facing in the same direction towards Sligo and both vans caught fire.
Mr O’Connor broke down on a number of occasions as he recalled trying to free himself from the wreckage as the van went on fire. He said he managed to pull himself out of the driver’s-side window onto the roof of the van.
“I pushed myself along,” he recalled before breaking down. “I stopped on the roof of the van and looked down and saw my legs. I couldn’t move with the pain … my right leg was bent it was not normal. The van was in flames. I started shouting … I thought I was going to die.”
Mr O’Connor managed to slide to the edge of the van where another motorist, Vincent Kilgannon, told him to fall on top of him which he did.
Mr O’Connor was taken to Mayo General Hospital in Castlebar where he had surgery for a broken femur and two broken knee caps.
He said he worked in ColΡiste Uisce in Elly Bay where he was active in surfing and all sports. As a result of the accident he spent six weeks in a wheelchair and another three months on crutches as he underwent extensive physiotherapy. The wire in his kneecap was eventually taken out in January after up to six surgeries to rectify the injuries. He is expected to make a full recovery ‘with the passage of time’.
The court heard that Mr O’Connor and two of his colleagues were returning from Ballina to Sligo when the accident occurred at approximately 8.30pm. He said it was dark but dry, and he remembers a lane of traffic to his right, and that in a split second he noticed head lights go sideways and towards his van.
Under cross examination from Mr Eoin Garavan, BL for Mr Hegarty, the witness said he had no idea how the accident occurred.
One of Mr O’Connor’s passengers, Darren Fitzgerald, said he was looking in his wallet but saw the headlights coming towards them.
Another witness, Vincent Kilgannon, told the court he was driving towards Ballina and was behind a Citroen Berlingo van, and that he had to stop as it turned right into a farm. He said (O’Connor’s) silver Transit passed him in the other direction, and that as he looked in his rear view mirror he saw lights behind him, which he claimed were over the white line.
He said it was his guess that the vehicle behind him was going too fast to stop colliding with his own stopped vehicle, and had gone over onto the other side of the road. He said that vehicle then collided with the Transit van that had passed him.
Mr Kilgannon described how he the flames were coming across the dash of the Transit van and one person was trapped and had to take him out. When he went back to the driver he noticed he was gone and had gone onto the roof of the van. He said the flames were growing and the driver was too scared to come and so he grabbed him and pulled him down.

Majority verdict
In his evidence Mr Hegarty said he had just bought the Transporter van in Sligo and was returning home when the accident occurred. He said all he remembers of the accident was coming over the crest of the hill and putting on the brakes. He said the rest was a blur and only remembers being in a house and talking to a female garda.
He said he was sorry the accident occurred but added that he did not think he could have done anything differently at the time. He suffered a broken collar bone and was released from hospital later that night.
Under cross examination from Mr Pat Reynolds, BL for the State, he reiterated that he had tried to slow down and added ‘I wish I knew what happened after that’.
In his closing remarks to the jury, Mr Garavan said there was a ‘lack of objective evidence’ and nobody knew what really happened on the night. He said there was no point of impact to determine where on the road the collision occurred because the debris was washed away when the fire brigade were putting out the flames. He added that there was no clear evidence to uphold the conclusion that his client was driving in a dangerous and criminal manner.
Judge MacCabe told them there were three possible verdicts they could deliver; guilty or not guilty of dangerous driving or an alternative of guilty of careless driving.
After over two hours deliberating, the jury told Judge MacCabe they could not all agree on a verdict and were asked to consider a majority verdict. A short time later they returned and found Mr Hegarty guilty of careless driving only. Sentencing was adjourned until October 27.