An 18-year-old who died after being crushed by his car in Wexford last year was “delighted” to have passed his NCT just hours before his death, an inquest has heard.
Colm Donnelly, a Leaving Cert student from Tinnock in Gorey, was working on his car at home on the day of the accident in February 2023, a sitting of Dublin District Coroner’s Court heard on Tuesday.
After passing the NCT, Mr Donnelly bought new tyres and wished to install a new exhaust in time for school the next day, his father Walter said.
Just minutes after his son went to carry out the work that night, Mr Donnelly received a call from him, during which he repeatedly called out: “Da”.
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“Colm had been on his back with his arms out straight and I noticed that his phone was a bit away from him, I think he must have voice-activated it,” he said.
Mr Donnelly recalled seeing the jack that was used to raise the car had slipped on to its side and become stuck while the car had fallen on top of his son, pinning him from his mid-abdomen to his head.
His son had, as a precaution, placed blocks and wedges underneath in addition to using the jack, he said.
“He went to pull the exhaust and he was that strong that he pulled the jack on its side. He wasn’t squashed, there wasn’t a mark on him, he just couldn’t take a breath,” he said.
Although his son’s feet were moving, he was not responding to his calls.
Mr Donnelly then phoned his neighbour, who assisted in raising the car with a new jack before the pair pulled his son out from underneath – but he was “lifeless”, the inquest heard.
His father carried out CPR until emergency services arrived soon after. He was brought to St Vincent’s University Hospital in Dublin.
“Things couldn’t have been better that day,” his father said, adding they had drawn up plans that morning for a new car shed and were also planning on going into a partnership on the family farm.
The inquest heard how Colm Donnelly had suffered a cardiac arrest after the car crushed his upper body, depriving him of oxygen, which resulted in a severe hypoxic brain injury. He was declared dead five days after the accident.
Speaking of his son, Mr Donnelly said he was “a great chap”, one who was hardworking and enjoyed playing rugby, and although school was “the last place he wanted to be”, he was a “big favourite” within the school community.
Following his death, Mr Donnelly’s family raised more than €57,000 for various causes through a tractor run, €20,000 of which went to the Intensive Care Unit at St Vincent’s University Hospital in Dublin.
A further €20,000 was donated to Gorey District Hospital and the remaining funds were divided between Gorey Community School and Kilanerin National School, both of which were attended by Mr Donnelly.
The inquest heard how the 18-year-old’s organ donations saved four lives, which Coroner Dr Clare Keane described as “unbelievably remarkable”.
“In terms of the fundraising, and everything, I can only state absolute admiration for what you’ve done, as a family who’s suffered an unimaginable loss, it’s absolutely clear how much you loved him,” she said.
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