Family holiday turns to tragedy
A 47-year-old Omagh woman who was visiting Bundoran on a family holiday died from alcohol intoxication, an inquest heard on Tuesday.
Annie Friel, of Culmore Park, Omagh was staying in her mobile home in Bundoran as part of a family holiday last August 1. At around 8pm, she and her brother-in-law Thomas McDonnell arrived at the Palace Hotel,
Owner Thomas McNulty told the inquest that Ms Friel “was in good form, laughing and drinking, and didn’t seem to have much drink taken”.
He served her four pints, but she didn’t finish the last one. At 11.30pm Ms Friel called a taxi, then went to the toilet. Shortly after, a woman said she had found Ms Friel unconscious and “in a bad way” in one of the cubicles.
Although CPR was administered, there was no response. Dr Stephen McNally of Bayview Medical Practice pronounced her dead at the scene at 12.40am.
Dr Clive Kilgallen, the pathologist who carried out the post mortem, cited “respiratory depression due to toxic levels of levels of ethanol” in Ms Friel’s system. Blood analysis showed 378mg alcohol per 100ml blood, nearly five times the legal limit of 80mg.
Coroner Dr Diarmuid Hegarty told the jury: “This is a frequent enough mechanism in cases where intoxication is the cause of death. The most appropriate verdict would be one of misadventure, as there is no evidence this lady intended to do herself any harm. This appears to have been an extraordinary, unfortunate event.”
He extended his very sincere sympathies to the family of the deceased and her wider circle of friends. Condolences were also expressed by the foreperson of the jury and Garda Sgt. Thomas Mitchell. The jury returned a verdict of death due to misadventure.
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Thursday 17 May 2012
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