The Health and Safety Authority sent a 17-volume file on the Navan school bus crash to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) yesterday afternoon.
Five school girls were killed in the crash at Kentstown on May 23rd last. A team of HSA inspectors led by the special investigations unit has been working on the inquiry for the past 10 months. Their findings deal with the condition of the bus, particularly the ABS (anti-lock braking system), which was turned off at the time of the crash.
The ABS is designed to prevent the brakes from jamming in the event of an emergency and it helps a vehicle to stay on the road.
The HSA inquiry also looked at the safety features at the crash scene. The road was being resurfaced at the time and roadworks and temporary lights were in place.
The file contains a section on the nature and condition of the road surface at the time of the crash. There was a temporary road surface in place and the road was due to be tarred shortly after the crash.
Just after the crash, the HSA censured Meath County Council for its failure to have a health and safety plan for the roadworks and for not having a supervisor to oversee the health and safety aspects of the project.
It is understood that the HSA file does not make any specific recommendations to the DPP. It is not unusual for the HSA to send a file to the DPP after an investigation, particularly if a fatality is involved.
A Bus Éireann spokeswoman said the company could not comment as it had not seen the HSA file because it was prepared for the DPP.
Bus Éireann has already been charged with owning a defective vehicle. A date for the trial may be set in early May when the case is listed for hearing at Navan District Court. A Garda spokeswoman said she did not know if other charges were pending as this was a matter for the DPP.
The HSA inquiry was one of three inquiries conducted after the crash. As well as the Garda inquiry, Bus Éireann ordered an independent investigation, led by former assistant Garda commissioner Jim McHugh.
It established that the ABS system was turned off. However, the DPP requested that the report should not be published until any court proceedings were dealt with.
The crash killed Claire McCluskey (18), Deirdre Scanlon (17), Lisa Callan (15), Aimee McCabe (15) and Sinéad Ledwidge (15).
The bus was not equipped with seat belts. After the crash, Minister for Education Mary Hanafin said all school buses operating within the School Transport Scheme would be equipped with seat belts by December 2006. She also announced the phasing-out of the arrangement where three children were allowed to share seats for two, by December 2006.
A spokeswoman said both initiatives were on target.
