Woman killed in crash was two-and-a-half times legal alcohol limit
Dr Michael Kennedy issued the warning during an inquest in Mallow, Co Cork, into the death of a young woman who died after her car crashed into a pillar outside Michael Flatley’s Castlehyde mansion in Fermoy last March.
Moira Burke, 33, from Castlehyde, Fermoy, had been drinking with colleagues from Castlehyde Stud at a Cheltenham preview in a pub in Fermoy on March 9.
She died the following morning when the car she was driving spun out of control and slammed into the entrance pillar to Mr Flatley’s estate.
She had two-and-a-half times the legal amount of alcohol in her bloodstream at the time of the accident, the inquest heard.
Dr Kennedy said Ms Burke was probably not aware of the level of alcohol still in her system.
Alcohol takes time to leave the body and can have a severe bearing on a motorist’s system the following morning, he said.
The inquest heard Ms Burke was at a function in Kerins’ Bar in Fermoy on March 9 and had been drinking since 9.30pm.
She parked her car at Pearse Square overnight and was taken with friends to a house after the function.
Robert Brophy, the assistant stud manager, was at the house and told the inquest he made coffee for the group.
He said he didn’t think there was much alcohol in the house and that people weren’t drinking.
He said he went to bed at about 3am and that as far as he could recall, Ms Burke went to bed about an hour later.
Andrew Magner of Grange Stud said he arrived at the pub at about 10pm.
He was drinking vodka and presumed that Ms Burke was drinking the same. He was also at the house later and said he thought Ms Burke went to bed before 7am.
The inquest established that she must have gone to bed some time between 4am and 7am.
Mr Brophy said he got up the following morning and drove four people to work.
He dropped Ms Burke off to collect her car at about 8.45am.
She was tired and had had nothing to eat, he said.
She planned to drive home and have a shower before going to work.
But on her way she lost control of her car and died instantly after it hit Mr Flatley’s pillar.
Inspector Senan Ryan read a statement from Mary McCarthy, who witnessed the accident, as she was driving her son to school.
Ms McCarthy said Ms Burke’s car, which was travelling towards her, appeared to veer off the road into a grass margin for no apparent reason.
The car then spun 360 degrees twice before slamming into the pillar and bouncing back.
Ms Burke, who was wearing a seat belt, died instantly from multiple injuries to her head and body.
She was pronounced dead at the scene by Dr Charlie McCarthy.
Garda Martin Allen, who knew Ms Burke, had to identify her body to Assistant State Pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster, at Cork University Hospital.
The jury returned a verdict of death by misadventure.
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