This article is from page 2 of the 2007-11-27 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 2 JPG
A SHORT summer holiday in Lahi- nch ended in tragedy for a 19-year- old Dublin man who drowned in the early hours of the morning after a night out.
Joseph ‘Joey’ Wall from Clontarf lost his life during the August bank holiday weekend last year, Ennis Coroner’s Court heard last week.
A day-long search followed his dis- appearance at around 4am on Mon- day, August 6. His body was located at the seashore less than 24 hours Fitoe
Joey’s friend, Tom Verling, said that a group of friends went back to their
bed and breakfast accommodation after a night out. He said that Joey went to the bed and breakfast and asked some friends to go for a swim. Tom and another friend agreed and they went down to the water.
“Joey started running and taking off his clothes. We started to run af- ter him,’ he recalled.
They followed Joey into the water, trying to catch up with him. They lost sight of him and called out his ue BaNToR
“Joey never replied,’ recalled Mr Verling.
Another friend, Sean Rooney, said Joey invited him to go swimming at around 4am. Sean initially declined,
but then agreed and they headed for the beach.
“Joey was taking off all his clothes as he went down the steps,’ he re- called.
He said he called him and waited in the water for some time, until the lifeguards told him to get out of the water.
The inquest heard that John Logan was out walking along the seashore at around 7.15pm on the Bank Holiday Monday. He noticed a male’s body in the water, face down. Doolin Rescue retrieved the body a short time later.
Garda John Cleary of Lahinch told the inquest that after the alarm was raised, the search for Mr Wall con-
tinued throughout the Bank Holiday Monday. The beach in Lahinch was deserted that day, apart from the search party, he said.
Pathologist Dr Peter Fawl carried out an autopsy on Mr Wall’s body on August 7 last. Death, he said, was due to asphyxia, secondary to drowning.
Coroner Isobel O’Dea said _ that, based on the evidence she had heard, the appropriate verdict was one of misadventure.
‘That unfortunately sums up the sad circumstances concerning Joseph’s death. It was a bank holiday week- end and there were a lot of people in Lahinch. It was a very sad and tragic end to the weekend,” she added.