Verdict of accidental death recorded in N5 crash

A VERDICT of accidental death was returned by a jury yesterday (Monday) after an inquest into the death of a young Balla man following a road traffic accident.
Joseph Mullaney of Cregg, Balla died following a road traffic accident on the N5 road between Ballyvary and Castlebar on April 11 last.
The inquest heard Mr Mullaney died from haemorrhage shock due to multiple traumatic injuries after his Mercedes van lost control, hitting a fence and entering a field off the N5 road past Horkan’s Garden Centre.
Sgt Gabriel McLoughlin, PSV inspector and forensic investigator, told the inquest that following an inspection of Mr Mullaney’s extensively damaged and distorted van he was satisfied it had been in a road worthy condition previous to the accident.
He told the inquest that he found excess speed was not a factor at the crash location. The inquest heard that the vehicle had turned 340 degrees from the initial travel route and that loose tools in the back of the van could have contributed to a shift of weight in the van but it was not clear if this was the case. The van had travelled 49 metres from the road to where it rested in the field.
Sgt McLoughlin outlined that the van had ‘oversteered’ for some unknown reason, and that the driver had not been wearing a seatbelt.
Consultant Pathologist Dr Tomas Nemeth told the inquest that Mr Mullaney would have been unconscious in a matter of seconds and would not have suffered.
The inquest was told that among those who attended the scene were two off duty nurses and an off duty paramedic who tended to the 34-year-old. Three others who initially came upon the accident rang the emergency services and prayed at the scene.
Following the verdict of accidental death returned by the jury, a representative for Mr Mullaney’s family thanked all those who attended the scene and described Mr Mullaney as a ‘devoted father’.
Coroner for Mayo south John O’Dwyer extended his sympathy to the Mullaney family and said he hoped that they would ‘rally as a family’ and described the experience of having to bury a son as ‘unnatural’.
Sgt Denis Harrington extended sympathies to the Mullaney family on behalf of An Garda SíochΡna.