Coroner calls for barriers on ‘dangerous’ Castlebar river

The Coroner for Mayo has called on Mayo County Council to consider putting barriers along the ‘dangerous’ Castlebar River after hearing the inquests of two people who drowned after entering the water.

Coroner Patrick O’Connor made his recommendations after hearing the inquests into Dr Farah Ahmed (33) and Castlebar-man Tony Fallon (55), who both drowned in the Castlebar River last year in separate incidents.

Dr Amhed, a doctor in Mayo University Hospital, drowned in the river after she accidently reversed her car through a pedestrian barrier at Hoban’s car park on January 20, 2023. The body of Mr Fallon, a well-known barber, was discovered in the river at the rear of Scoil Raifteirí National School in Castlebar on July 11, 2023.

After hearing the case of Mr Fallon, Mr O’Connor echoed a call by the deceased man’s family for Mayo County Council to erect a fence close to the location where his body was found, where a steep fall to the river is guarded by only a ‘flimsy fence’.

Mr O’Connor described the death of Dr Ahmed as a tragic accident, but he noted that the pedestrian barrier along the river in Hoban’s car park was not strong enough to prevent a vehicle entering the water. He recommended that the local authority make the Castlebar River safer to prevent further tragedies in the future.

At the conclusion of Dr Ahmed’s inquest, which took place in Swinford Courthouse, he said: “I have become aware in the last few years that the Castlebar River is quite a dangerous place, and it beholds the local authority and others to perhaps look at what safety measures are in the vicinity of the river itself.

“Unfortunately in Farah’s case there wasn’t a barrier to stop her car after she merely reversed in with a surge, which caused her vehicle to go into the river. It does seem to be following this inquest and the other inquest today and others over the years that the entire river bank should be looked at and certain barriers need to be put in place. Not just to prevent pedestrians from going in but also perhaps other users of the area itself,” Mr O’Connor added.

Tragic accident

Dr Ahmed’s inquest heard that she had entered Hoban’s car park at approximately 10.17pm on January 2020, 2023, and attempted to reverse into a parking space.

Sgt Gabriel McLoughlin, forensic collision investigator, explained that CCTV from a local business showed Dr Ahmed attempting to reverse before straightening up and attempting to reverse into the parking space.

As she reversed the second time, her Audi A6 car mounted the curb of the footpath and collided with the metal wire fence. The car went through the fence and entered the water before flipping and landing on its roof.

The night of the accident was described as cold and wet with few people out, and the inquest heard the alarm was not raised until over an hour later at 11.45pm. There was no suggestion of frost or ice on the night.

Garda Christophe Perrot said that when he arrived at the scene, river was fast flowing and he could only see the top of the car’s wheels. Divers were deployed to enter the water and the car was lifted out using a crane. Dr Ahmed was discovered inside. A colleague from Mayo University Hospital identified her and pronounced her dead.

Mr O’Connor was informed that Dr Ahmed was a Pakistani national who worked in Mayo University Hospital and lived in an apartment on Tucker Street in Castlebar.

Her sister Iqra was present for the inquest, but her parents were unable to attend due to issues obtaining a visa in time.

Sgt McLoughlin, who examined the car, explained that it was in the reverse gear, and he found no defects with the vehicle. He added that the top steel tubular bar on the pedestrian barrier was diverted upwards by the collision and it had not been strong enough to prevent the car entering the water. He described what happened as a pure accident.

A post-mortem found that Dr Ahmed died as a result of asphyxia due to drowning and recorded a verdict of accidental death. Mr O’Connor expressed his sympathies to her sister and parents and to all of her colleagues in Mayo University Hospital who paid tribute to her following her death.

“It was a tragic accident which took away the life of a young woman who was at the start of her profession of caring for us here in this part of the country,” he said.

Family request

The inquest into the death of Mr Fallon of 21 Father Meehan Place, Castlebar, heard evidence from a friend, Eugene Flynn, who had drinks with him in the Bodhran bar in Castlebar on July 9, 2023. Mr Flynn described Mr Fallon as being in great form.

Mr Fallon left the pub at around 12.30am on July 10 and was identified on CCTV at around 1.12am close to the entrance of the Castlebar Greenway.

On July 11, gardaí received a report at 4.10pm of a man face down in the river at the rear of Scoil Raifteirí National School in Castlebar. The body was retrieved and a man pronounced dead at 5.33pm.

The circumstances surrounding how Mr Fallon entered the river could not be determined, but the inquest heard that the alcohol level in his blood was high. A post-mortem found no injuries on the body, and the cause of death to be asphyxia due to drowning.

Mr O’Connor recorded a verdict of accidental death and sympathised with his family. He also endorsed a request by them that fencing be upgraded at the area where Mr Fallon’s body was discovered to ensure a similar tragedy does not occur.