A YOUNG man who was a passenger on a school bus when it was involved in an incident in which five schoolgirls died has brought a High Court action seeking damages for post-traumatic stress, depression and loss of opportunity as a result of the incident.
Daryl Noonan (20), living in Australia but originally from Dean Hill, Hayes, Navan, Co Meath, had sued Bus Éireann arising from the tragedy in which the school bus went out of control and overturned on the Kentstown Road near Navan on May 23rd, 2005.
Bus Éireann has conceded liability in the action and Mr Justice Garrett Sheehan is being asked to assess damages for Mr Noonan.
The court was told Mr Noonan, at the time of the incident, was in his second year in secondary school in Navan, his grades were good and he got on well with his family.
Mr Noonan said he remembered hearing screams from others on the bus just before the crash occurred, and he also saw other passengers who had injuries before making his way out of the vehicle.
Mr Noonan suffered minor injuries but said he started getting frequent nightmares and flashbacks afterwards and becomes anxious while travelling, especially when travelling around a bend.
Following the incident, Mr Noonan said he was unable to talk about it to others.
He knew one of the girls who was killed in the incident very well, he said.
Over the following months, he also lost complete interest in his schoolwork, which had been good prior to the crash.
In addition to getting poor grades over the next few years, he was suspended from school for “mitching” and also lost interest in sports in which he had participated. While he passed his Junior Cert in 2006, he did not do as well as he should have. He finished secondary school but did not pass his Leaving Cert.
His relationship with his family deteriorated and he spent very little time at home. He began drinking alcohol a lot and sometimes alone, he said. He attended a counsellor and, in 2009, decided to move to Australia to get away from what had happened.