The coroner for Kerry has stressed the importance of all motorists wearing seatbelts.
Aisling Quilter was speaking at the inquest today into the death of 25-year-old Thomas Gudgeon, of Glen Hazel, Blackwater Bridge, Templenoe, who died in a car crash outside Kenmare in 2022.
Ms Quilter said it was unclear whether Mr Gudgeon had been wearing a seatbelt at the time of the collision, but that he had been ejected from the back seat of the car in which he was travelling.
She returned a verdict of accidental death and described the incident as a "very, very tragic accident that happened in a split second."
At 5:45pm on Wednesday, 12th October 2022, the grey Volkswagen Polo in which Mr Gudgeon was a back-seat passenger collided with a black Audi A6.Mr Gudgeon's girlfriend, Jenny O'Driscoll, was driving him and their friend, Owen Lambe, from Kenmare town to Mr Gudgeon’s home.
Mr Lambe, the front-seat passenger, told the inquest that he saw a black car at the entrance to Dromquinna Horse Riding Stables on the N70 Ring of Kerry Road.
He said he presumed the driver of the black car would have seen them and waited before pulling out.
The driver of the black Audi A6, Melissa Staunch of Dromore Old, Blackwater, Killarney, told the coroner that she had collected her daughter from the stables and had used a convex mirror opposite the entrance to check if the road was clear.
She also said she couldn’t recall anything obstructing her view.
The front right of the Volkswagen Polo struck the rear left of the Audi A6.
Thomas Gudgeon was thrown from the vehicle before it came to a stop on its side, trapping him underneath.
He remained conscious for a time but was pronounced dead at the scene by Dr Ryan Say, following 45 minutes of CPR.
A post-mortem examination by Dr Margaret Bolster found the cause of death to be haemorrhage and shock, and the rupture of a traumatic dissected aortic aneurysm due to a road traffic collision.
Addressing the inquest, Melissa Staunch apologised to Mr Gudgeon’s family and girlfriend, saying not a day goes by that she does not think of him.
She said she was responsible and added that she could not put into words the wrong done to Tom.
She also apologised to the emergency services and all those who attended the scene.
