A coroner has called for regular checks on the accessibility of lifebuoys after an inquest heard that friends of a teenager who got into difficulty while swimming in the Grand Canal could not untie a lifebuoy to help in rescue attempts, reports RTE.
A sitting of Kildare Coroner’s Court heard 15-yr-old Max O’Connor from Newcastle, Co Dublin, drowned while swimming in the canal at the 13th lock between Ardclough and Celbridge, Co Kildare on 11 May, 2024, reports RTE.
Coroner Loretta Nolan issued several recommendations after hearing evidence from eyewitnesses about the teenagers’ inability to remove a lifebuoy from its stand.
Dr Nolan said she would write to Waterways Ireland to alert the organisation of her recommendation that lifebuoys should be both available and accessible, reports RTE.
She acknowledged the issue of vandalism of lifesaving equipment but stressed the need to “get the balance right” in making them accessible.
She added it is important that anyone entering the water to help another person can access lifebuoys safely, reports RTE.
Dr Nolan also called for swimming lessons to become a formal part of the secondary school curriculum.
She noted that Transition Year students receive some lifeguard training in cooperation with Water Safety Ireland and said it would be beneficial for all post-primary students to have knowledge of what to do in similar situations, reports RTE.
The inquest heard evidence from six teenagers who were with Max at the time.
They explained how two groups of friends from different schools met and decided to swim in the Grand Canal near the Cliff at Lyons country retreat, reports RTE.
Max, a third-year student at Coláiste Chilliain in Clondalkin, Dublin, had gone to the canal on his e-scooter with a speaker to play music.
The teenagers described how some jumped in and out of the canal, though Max had initially said he would not go in the water, reports RTE.
Another friend said he and Max eventually jumped in together after others had been diving for about 30 minutes.
He raised the alarm just after 5pm when he realised Max was not coming out of the water, reports RTE.
One witness said he would have advised Max not to go in if he had known Max could not swim.
The teenager recalled seeing Max struggling to stay afloat with air bubbles coming out of his mouth, reports RTE.
He said he jumped back in, and both tried to reach each other.
The witness added he attempted to hold onto a chain to go deeper but “we were out of reach of each other,” reports RTE.
“Everyone loved Max. He was a good friend and a friendly guy.
“We’ll all miss Max. He’ll never be forgotten,” he said, describing him as “very funny” and “gentle,” reports RTE.
Another teenager who dived into the canal to try and rescue Max said his friend seemed to be panicking in the water.
The witness explained he and another swimmer grabbed Max by the arms but could not pull him up, reports RTE.
“He was struggling and panicking,” the teenager said, reports RTE.
He added that others were shouting at them to get out of the water, which was estimated to be 4.5 to 6m deep.
One girl fought back tears as she recounted struggling to remove the lifebuoy from its stand.
Another boy described trying to kick the lifebuoy stand to release it, as the rope was “wrapped around a pole” and could not be removed, reports RTE.
Maeve Boylan, who lives near the lock, said she was initially wary of the teenagers due to previous experiences with troublemakers but observed that they seemed “calm and friendly.”
Ms Boylan noted that she noticed some panic among them and realised shortly after what had happened when she heard someone shout that someone was missing, reports RTE.
She told the inquest she spent 20 minutes on a 999 call to emergency services.
She also obtained a key to open the lock to drain the water from the area where the group was swimming, reports RTE.
Ms Boylan said she was frustrated at not being able to do more to help after realising they could not save Max.
Max’s aunt Joanne Moore formally identified her nephew’s body to gardaÃ, reports RTE.
Dr Nolan said the post-mortem showed that Max died from drowning.
She added that toxicology reports confirmed witnesses’ accounts that he had not consumed alcohol or drugs, reports RTE.
Returning a verdict of accidental death, Dr Nolan recommended counselling for Max’s friends, if they had not already received it.
The coroner said she would be writing to the schools attended by the witnesses to suggest that counselling could be beneficial, reports RTE.
“It’s an experience that most people don’t experience thankfully,” she said, reports RTE.
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