An 18-year-old apprentice carpenter who died after a fall at a building site had been an organ donor-card carrier since he was 12, the inquest into his death was told yesterday.
"All his organs were used, and it was some comfort to his parents and family that he gave life to others," said Mr Gary O'Driscoll, the solicitor representing the family of Anthony Lane, of Ballinlougha, Nohoval, Co Cork.
Mr Lane fell 15 feet on to a solid concrete floor while working at a building site in Cook Street, Cork, on August 25th last. He suffered severe head injuries and died on September 1st at University Hospital, Cork.
One of his workmates, Mr David O'Hanlon, a roofer and slabber, described the accident.
"Anthony was coming down a spiral staircase. There was scaffolding blocking the way so he tried to go around it. He held on to a pole with one hand and he had a saw in the other. He lost his footing and fell over the side."
In answer to Mr O'Driscoll, the witness said there was no hand rail or bannister or any sort of protection to stop someone from falling down the central stairwell.
The jury returned a verdict that death was due to severe brain damage resulting from a skull fracture.