AN EIGHT-YEAR-OLD girl, who saw her father bleed profusely after a swimming pool shower door smashed, has been awarded more than €10,500 damages for psychological shock.
Barrister Derek Sheahan told the Circuit Civil Court yesterday that Eva Rushe, Blossom Hill, Kilcornan, Co Limerick, had not been physically hurt in the incident but had suffered mental pain and anguish.
He said Eva was five years old when she had visited the Clarion Hotel, Liffey Valley, Lucan, Co Dublin, with her parents.
On August 7th, 2005, she had seen her father, Neil Rushe, coming out of a shower cubicle at the hotel’s swimming pool when the glass door had fallen off and shattered.
Mr Sheahan said that Mr Rushe’s right foot had been crushed and badly injured and there had been cuts all over his body.
Mr Rushe was screaming in shock and pain and shedding a lot of blood.
He told Circuit Court president Mr Justice Matthew Deery that Eva had been a short distance from her father at the time and had seen everything that was happening.
She had been greatly affected by the distress of her father at the time, by the blood and by his having to be taken to hospital.
Mr Sheahan said that the family had enjoyed many weekends away together in hotels with leisure centres but since the accident they had become centres of phobic reaction for the child.
Judge Deery approved the settlement offer made by the defendants, Choice Hotels Ireland, trading as the Clarion Hotel Group, and ABP-TBS (Ireland) Ltd., Kilcoole, Co Wicklow, suppliers of the shower door.