A coroner is hoping that photos taken by a Garda crime scene photographer will solve the mystery of how a 17-stone man fell through a 14in gap to his death.
The pictures were taken at the scene of a fatal accident which caused the death of construction worker Martin (Matt) Fox of Carnmore West, Oranmore, Co Galway. Foul play is not suspected.
Mr Fox (53) had been working on the construction of a house at Aille, Barna, Co Galway, but he was discovered with serious head injuries on the floor of the kitchen of the new house shortly after 9am on December 12th, 2011. He died at University College Hospital, Galway eight days later.
Joists
When found he was directly underneath the un-floored joists of the bedroom above the kitchen. The gap between the joists was just 14 inches, health and safety inspector Bernadette Gannon told the inquest in Galway.
The distance from the joists to the kitchen floor where Mr Fox was found was 10ft 3in.
Asked by West Galway Coroner Dr Ciaran MacLoughlin if she could offer an explanation as to how a 17-stone man could fall through a gap of just 14in, Ms Gannon said: “It’s really unusual – in my opinion, an extraordinary tragedy”.
Ms Gannon said she had not found any tools or other equipment on the upper level of the dormer bungalow under construction.
Three-quarters of the upstairs section of the house had been floored, but not the section immediately above the kitchen where Mr Fox was found, plasterer Martin Maguire recalled.
Fracture
Consultant pathologist Dr Zsolt Orosz said the postmortem revealed Mr Fox had sustained a fracture to his skull and inter-cerebral haemorrhages.
He concluded that the cause of death was extensive inter-cerebral haemorrhage, following an accidental fall.
Dr MacLoughlin said: “I’m not quite satisfied how it happened – how a man of his weight could have fallen through a gap of 14 inches.”
The coroner asked gardaí present to contact the crime scene photographer who had initially visited the scene and taken photos. Following an adjournment, the coroner was told that the officer was involved in an ongoing trial in Galway.
Gardaí undertook to request him to attend the hearing today when it is hoped to complete the inquest.