An 11-year-old boy who caught his leg on a screw in a water tank during a game of hide-and-seek in public gardens has been awarded €44,000 damages against Dublin City Council.
Barrister Fergus O’Higgins told the Circuit Civil Court that the boy, Nojus Baltrimus, lived in a city council apartment in Liberty Court, Lower Clanbrassil Street, Dublin.
On June 15th, 2014, he had been playing hide-and-seek with friends in the communal garden area of a Mercer Street apartment complex and had hidden himself behind a water cylinder.
Mr O'Higgins told Judge Raymond Groarke that when emerging from his hiding place, Nojus, now aged 14, caught his shin on the pointed end of an exposed metal screw jutting out from the water tank.
“He suffered a very serious laceration to his right shin and had to have 25 stitches inserted in the wound,” Mr O’Higgins told the court.
He said that after the incident Nojus was taken to Crumlin hospital, where the stitches were inserted.
Nojus attended his GP two weeks later to have them removed, but only half could be taken out because of an infection, for which he was prescribed antibiotics.
Permanent scar
The court heard that, in addition to the serious pain and suffering Nojus endured, he had been left with a large, permanent scar on the front of his right leg which ran almost the full length of his shin.
Mr O'Higgins said Dublin City Council had made a settlement offer of €44,000 and costs to the boy and his mother, Sabina Bilyte.
The judge said a lot of young men wear scars as badges of honour, but the one Nojus had been left with was not the kind of scar anyone would want.
Approving the offer, the judge said that were it not for an element of contributory negligence in the case he would have insisted on a higher award.