Written 2 weeks ago by Angel Croitor

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Janette Mangan from County Offaly doesn’t want her son to have died in vain.

On October 3rd 2015, Adam was crushed by a 250kg trailer gate while working on a farm in Rhode.

“He was ‘it’ for myself and Ray, and he was ‘it’ for his three brothers – he excelled at school and he excelled at sport – he fought all the way for what he got.”

On the day he died, the family received a phone call to say Adam was “caught in a trailer” which she assumed to mean his arm or leg. She would soon learn of his catastrophic head injury.

Janette remembers exiting the car while it was still in motion as they arrived at the scene. Adam’s body was visible from the distance, a pool of blood at his feet.

“I saw them doing all the tests – I still never pronounced my son dead.”

The Health and Safety Authority began its investigation after Adam was laid to rest the following week. Janette says the family was invited to a meeting at the Portlaoise Heritage Hotel (now the Midland Park Hotel.)

“It was a room and outside was ‘Health and Safety Meeting’ – there were glasses, jugs of water, and loads of chairs and I thought ‘this is something like work’.”

Janette considered it a cold process and did not appreciate being asked why her children were not present.

“My youngest child – our day is trying to get him up and try and get him to school which he’s not able to do at the minute – he has to sit a leaving cert – my other two sons haven’t been back to work yet because they’re not able – and you think I’m able to bring them in here?”

The trailer was examined by engineers but she claims her questions went unanswered because the matter was still “under investigation”.

A safety alert for the HC 300 trailer was issued prior to the inquest but Janette says she was never informed in advance. The hearing was told a design flaw meant the incident could be repeated with a perfectly maintained trailer.

Janette was not impressed by the safety notice in the Irish Farmers Journal, remarking it was “so small, you wouldn’t find it.”

She wants the HSA to treat families differently in future.

“Don’t bring grieving parents to hotels. They can call to your house and be more human. They have to try and deal with you and give you some answers – they can’t say to parents we cant tell you this we cant tell you that. We were grieving for our son but we were getting nowhere.’

Above all, she doesn’t want Adam to have died in vain and hopes farmers will heed the alert to have their HC300 trailers fixed.

Hear Janette’s courageous interview with Will Faulkner below.

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