Families of bus crash students fear delay of inquiry findings

FAMILIES affected by the Navan school bus tragedy fear the findings of the inquiry into the accident may not be known for several years after the Director Public Prosecutions asked for publication to be delayed until all possibility of criminal trials have passed.

The father of one of the students injured in the crash last May criticised the decision to withhold the report, saying it was just the latest in a long line of delays after initial promises that investigations would be completed within weeks.

Gerry Frawley, whose daughter Aingeala is still recovering, said: “We are entitled to know what happened. The feeling I have now is God knows when we are going to find out.”

Five girls died in the crash when the bus carrying 51 students from five different schools flipped over at Kentstown outside Navan town. Twenty six others were hospitalised along with the drivers of two cars caught up in the smash.

Navan TD Damien English said most people he knew were willing to wait for publication of the report if a delay assisted prosecutions but he warned their patience would not last indefinitely.

“People think it’s the right thing to do providing it’s not a long-term delay. It’s all very fine talking about prosecutions but the most important thing is preventing a repeat and if there is information in the report that would help, then that information needs to come out.”

Mr Frawley said he was annoyed that the families were only told the night before they were due to receive the report that it was not being published.

He said the inquiry teams had enough legal expertise available to them to have given advance warning that there may be problems publishing the findings.

He was also angry that a select group of people in Bus Eireann now knew what caused the accident but the people most affected were denied the information.

“Somebody knows the sequence of events now. I would love somebody to tell me,” he told RTÉ radio.

“They know now whether it’s one reason or two reasons or a combination of reasons. Please tell us even if it’s an edited version.”

The DPP received a garda file on the accident several weeks ago but is awaiting completion of a separate inquiry by the Health and Safety Authority which also has the power to initiate criminal proceedings.

He asked Bus Eireann on Wednesday to put off publication of its own inquiry findings for fear of prejudicing any possible prosecutions.