IN/0326

Omagh mercy driver fined
Ambulance crash death 'fault of bombers'

AMBULANCE chiefs said they were "saddened" last night by the fine imposed on one of their drivers who killed a man when his ambulance, carrying a victim of the Omagh bomb, collided with his car last year.
Yesterday at Belfast crown court, sitting in Antrim, 64-year-old James Entwhistle from Windmill Heights, Enniskillen, pleaded guilty to a charge of causing the death by dangerous driving of Newtownards man Gary White. He was fined £750.
Kenny McMahon, acting director of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, said the whole incident was "regrettable".
"Our employee was doing his duty when the accident occurred and regrets the incident deeply," he said.
The death of 37 year-old Mr White was blamed in court yesterday on the Real IRA group who planted the massive bomb in Omagh the previous day.
Mr White died when his car was struck by the ambulance which was carrying one of the injured Spanish children to the Ulster Hospital at Dundonald for plastic surgery.
The accident occurred at the junction of the Knock dual carriageway and the King's Road when the ambulance drove through a red light hitting Mr White's car.
Crown lawyer Peter Sefton told the court Mr. White's family had made it clear they did not wish there to be a prosecution because "Mr Entwhistle was trying to do a job in difficult circumstances".
Judge Anthony Hart heard Mr Entwhistle had been on duty for more than 27 hours having volunteered to do extra shifts because of the enormous strain on the emergency services, and had driven hundreds of miles during this period.
Defence QC Kevin Finnegan said his client had no record of any sort and had never been involved in an accident having worked for the health service for 42 years.
"The length of time he had been on duty is a factor in this case, and by his plea of guilty he accepts his responsibility.
"He is grateful to Mr. White's family for their attitude, but he accepts he caused this accident and is full of remorse over what happened.
"The death of Mr White was caused by the bombers at Omagh as much as by anything else. This was an emergency caused by the bomb and the real responsibility for his death lies with the people who brought that bomb into Omagh," Mr Finnegan added.
Passing sentence Judge Hart said the accident was caused, not by excessive speed, but by the fact that the ambulance driver's view to his left was obscured and he failed to appreciate the possibility of a car emerging from the left.
"Drivers of emergency service vehicles are permitted to go through a red light provided it is safe to do so. The driver would normally sound his siren as an additional means of alerting other drivers, but it appears that at the junction the siren was off so as not to distress the passenger."
As an experienced driver Mr Entwhistle ought to have realised a small car to his left would be completely concealed from his view.
"But the accused had been on duty continuously for a long period and no-one could be other than very tired and have their faculties and reactions seriously diminished by this.
"In these circumstances I am satisfied he made a momentary but very serious and tragic error of judgment, almost certainly caused by tiredness."
The judge added that the driver's speed of between 30 and 40mph was not grossly excessive in the circumstances and was not an aggravating factor.
Imposing a fine of £750 he said Mr Entwhistle had been trying to preserve the life and health of others, and there was no doubt what had happened would be a heavy burden on him.
He added that the exceptional circumstances of the case justified the court in dispensing with the otherwise mandatory disqualification from driving.
Judge Hart added that he hoped the ambulance service would take note that he had not made a ruling affecting Mr Entwhistle's career.