A four-year-old boy died three days after he was pushed from the roof of a shed near his home by a five-year-old from a neighbouring estate, Dublin City Coroners' Court heard yesterday.
Ryan Hernon, of Tyrone Place, Inchicore, Dublin, suffered a head injury when he fell on a metal manhole cover from the roof of a pram shed on June 11th last.
He was taken first to Our Lady's Hospital, Crumlin, and transferred to Beaumont Hospital on June 13th, where he died the following day.
Ms Audrey Hernon, the boy's mother, said Ryan was playing outside their flat with another four-year-old. She saw them climb on to the roof. She also saw the five-year-old on the roof and knew her son was afraid of him. She said Ryan came to the edge of the roof and she saw the other boy push him off.
A post-mortem examination carried out at Beaumont Hospital showed the presence of meningitis as well as a skull fracture. It was unclear whether the meningitis was present prior to the incident or occurred afterwards.
The Dublin City Coroner, Dr Brian Farrell, adjourned the inquest to March 25th.