Department Satisfied with Culvert Safety Measures, Inquest Reveals
The Noah Donohoe inquest has disclosed that a government department expressed satisfaction with the safety measures implemented around public access to a culvert near the location where the 14-year-old boy disappeared in 2020.
Noah Donohoe's body was discovered more than 600 metres downstream from the culvert inlet, which is situated behind private residences on Northwood Road in north Belfast.
A tall steel security fence restricts public entry to the culvert from Linear Park, an adjacent public park.
The inquest has been examining whether additional safety measures could have been established to limit public access from other sides of the culvert.
Expert Witness Comments on Possible Additional Safety Measures
Dr Mark Cooper, an expert witness specializing in health and safety, suggested that
"a deterrent fence"could have been installed in the area where Noah went missing, specifically behind the Northwood Road houses.
During cross-examination, a barrister representing the Department for Infrastructure outlined the maintenance and access practices concerning the culvert inlet.
She explained that residents of nearby houses are considered
"riparian owners", meaning they own the land between their homes and the watercourse at the culvert.
The barrister noted that fencing off land not owned by the department is challenging because riparian owners retain rights of access to their land.
She also cited a departmental report stating that
"at no time has there been any evidence such as graffiti or litter at the structure to indicate that the site is subject to unauthorised access or anti-social behaviour".
Departmental Report Highlights and Resident Vigilance
The barrister further emphasized another section of the same report, which noted:
"The department operation teams who were inspecting the culvert inlet screen on at least a weekly basis did not report any evidence to suggest that unauthorised access was occurring."
She added that local residents were
"vigilant and alert"and that the area surrounding the culvert was not
"an abandoned area of land".
The lawyer stated that residents regarded the land
"as their own", which
"greatly diminished"the likelihood of any unauthorised or inappropriate public access to the culvert.
Expert Witness on Security Measures and Risks
Dr Cooper remarked that additional security measures would have offered continuous protection and expressed his view that residents' oversight could not be
"as robust as physical hardware".
He also noted that even if the probability of public access to a confined space was low, the potential consequences could be severe.
The expert described the culvert as a
"very dangerous confined space"and stated he believed it was
"a dangerous place where you'd want people to be kept out of".
Department for Infrastructure's Position and Expert Testimony
The Department for Infrastructure's barrister informed the inquest that there was
"no known public access"prior to 2020.
When questioned about conflicting evidence from another expert witness regarding some aspects of his findings, Dr Cooper responded:
"This is not a precise science."
He further added:
"People believe it is an exact science, and it isn't."
