Tragic end to Maam Turk trek for visiting hill-walker

A Dublin man, who had been a frequent visitor to Leenane, died while out walking alone in the Maam Turk mountains on St Patrick’s Day, an Inquest into his death heard on Friday.

Coroner for West Galway, Dr Ciaran MacLoughlin, was able to offer some comfort to the man’s family, by confirming with the pathologist that death had been almost instantaneous, and that he had not died from exposure overnight.

Patrick Casey (53), of Lucan, had been renting a house in the area for the previous two years, as he and his partner, Sheila Kilduff, enjoyed hill walking. She had not accompanied him on his last trip, however, as she had just had an operation.

He was last seen in Hamilton’s Bar, in the village, on March 16. He left after one pint at 9pm.

However, he had been in regular phone contact with Ms Kilduff the following day.

In a text message sent at 7.38am he told her that he was heading out on a particular walking route.

“I’ve food and clothes for several people,” he assured her.

At about 4pm, he sent another message saying that he was nearly off ‘the hill’ and would be heading to the pub again.

“Next stop – Hamilton’s,” he wrote.

She rang him at 9.43pm, but could not reach him and, presuming he was still in the pub, she went to bed. She became anxious when, the following morning, he had not responded, and did not answer any further calls.

She contacted a friend of theirs living in Leenane, who had not seen him in the village that day. More enquiries were made, but there had been no sightings, and she filled out a missing report in her local Garda station in Dublin. She then travelled down to Leenane herself to help.

In the meantime, the Galway Mountain Rescue Team had responded to the call from Clifden Garda Station, and they asked for the assistance of their Mayo colleagues.

They were on the scene before 11am, and split up into search parties.

Local farmer, James O’Neill, told the inquiry at Galway Courthouse that he was a member of the Maam Turk Walkers Club and, with his local knowledge, he also volunteered to help.

He searched the area known as King’s Valley, which is located at the back of the village, at the North Western end of the Maam Turks.

At 2pm, he saw something red in the distance. As he got closer, he saw that it was a person wearing a red jacket. He noticed that the man had severe lacerations to his head.

“He had obviously come off the cliff… it is very steep, grassy and, in wet conditions, it would have been very greasy,” he told the Inquest, estimating that the fall could have been from up to 300m.

“If he had slipped, he would slide down, and he was wearing waterproofs, so he would slide harder. There were no marks on the ground to know where he had commenced his fall… it is very unforgiving ground.”

Rory Sherlock, team leader with Galway Mountain Rescue, received permission from the Coroner and Gardaí to remove the body from the scene at about 4.45pm. He did so after taking pictures, and making notes, which were passed on to investigators.

Mr Casey’s remains were brought to the roadside in Leenane, where they were met by a doctor, who pronounced death. His partner formally identified the remains at 6.35pm.

Garda Owen O’Donnell, who had taken the initial call from Ms Kilduff and who had alerted the mountain rescue team, noted three large lacerations to the man’s face, and said that he appeared to have suffered a fractured skull.

The remains were taken to UHG for a post-mortem examination. This was performed by consultant pathologist, Dr Teresa McHale, the following day.

She confirmed significant external lacerations to the scalp, the largest of which measured 20cm in length. There were also two deep lacerations to the liver, which accounted for the large amount of blood found in his abdomen.

The Coroner, Dr Ciaran MacLoughlin, put a query to her – that had come from Ms Kilduff – he asked if death had been quick or had the delay in searching for him contributed to his death.

Dr McHale said that Mr Casey would not have been conscious after his fall, due to the significant blow sustained to his head.

“He was not out there (alive) all night,” she added.

The Coroner returned a verdict, in accordance with the medical evidence, that death was caused by hypovolemic shock (blood loss), due to a haemorrhage, caused by lacerations and fractured ribs sustained in an accidental fall.

He complimented the work of Mr Sherlock and his team from Galway Mountain Rescue and Garda O’Donnell.

“I’ve a report here that is equivalent to military precision; 18 in all were involved in the search, all with documented duties,” he said.

“We are greatly appreciative of the work you do, it is very skilful and hazardous. You do bring comfort to people they are found alive, but also bring some degree of closure for the next of kin when they are not.”

He offered his sincere sympathies to Mr Casey’s partner, his children, and other family members, on the circumstances of his untimely, sudden, and tragic death.