Household of man who drowned in Thomond Bridge cage crash settles Excessive Court docket motion

The household of a person who plunged to his demise and drowned within the River Shannon after the metal cage carrying him and his colleagues as they labored on a Limerick bridge all of the sudden fell into Water settled a Excessive Court docket motion regarding his demise.

Blocker Bryan Whelan from O’Brien’s Bridge, Co Clare was simply 29 when he and fellow stonemason TJ O’Herlihy (36) from Castleisland, Co Kerry had been trapped within the cage which fell into the river greater than 9 years in the past and each males drowned.

Their colleague, Paul Murphy, from Askeaton, Co Limerick, managed to free his harness and was rescued by first responders after being swept away alongside the Shannon Estuary.

Whelan and O’Herlihy had been strapped to the cage and sporting life jackets whereas finishing up specialist restore work on the south facet of Thomond Bridge, Limerick metropolis, when the tragedy occurred on 29 August 2015.

Mr Whelan’s father, John Whelan of O’Brien’s Bridge, Co Clare, had sued Gaelach Droichead Ltd buying and selling as Irish Bridge with its registered workplace at Ballyengland, Askeaton, Co Limerick; his employer, Paul Mulcair Ltée of the identical tackle; Nationwide Crane Rent Ltd whose registered workplace is at Dock Street, Limerick Metropolis; Palfinger Eire Ltd whose registered workplace is at Cloncollig Industrial Property, Tullamore, Co Offaly; Limerick Metropolis and County Council and Malachy Walsh and Co Ltd whose registered workplace is at Park Home, Mahon Expertise Park, Bessboro Street, Blackrock, Co Cork.

It was claimed that always in query Mr Whelan was in a male cage and sporting a private flotation gadget or life jacket and a security harness with a lanyard hooked up to the cage rail by a snap buckle.

The person cage was hooked up to a crane mounted on a three-axle inflexible truck.

It was additional claimed that all of the sudden and with out warning, the person’s cage fell into the River Shannon the place, reportedly, no rescue boat was current. Mr Whelan and a colleague turned trapped and drowned.

It was additional claimed that there had been a failure to supply a protected office and a protected system of labor and that Mr Whelan would have been pressured to work in circumstances and circumstances which had been recognized or should have been recognized that they had been harmful.

The case was referred to the Excessive Court docket just for the evaluation of damages.

The Whelan household’s solicitor, Michael J McMahon SC, instructed by solicitor Sean Fitzgerald, after a number of hours of discussions, knowledgeable the court docket that the case had been settled in opposition to all defendants. He mentioned it was a really tragic case.

The phrases of the settlement are confidential.

Ms Justice Denise Brett famous the settlement and congratulated all events for reaching a decision.