Family of man who lay dead inside Mallow house for 22 years call for review of derelict sites laws
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The family of a man whose skeletal remains lay undiscovered in a derelict house in Cork for more than 20 years have called for a full review of the State’s derelict sites laws and other protocols to ensure a similar tragedy doesn’t happen again.
Tim O’Sullivan’s family has also called for “a more compassionate, efficient and proactive” derelict sites and compulsory purchase order system citing fears that in a country with 180,000 derelict properties, Ireland’s dereliction crisis could be hiding more similar tragedies.
They spoke out on Wednesday after an inquest into the circumstances of his death established that he died in his terraced bungalow in Mallow, Co Cork, sometime between January 9 and 23, 2001, aged 62, but that his remains lay undiscovered until January this year — 22 years later.
Foul play was ruled out but given the advanced state of decomposition, an exact cause of death could be not established.
Coroner for North Cork, Dr Michael Kennedy, recorded an open verdict.
Mr O’Sullivan’s family said they acknowledge that they could have done more to locate Tim and will “bear the weight of our own regrets” for not being able to find him earlier.
“This is something we will carry with us always,” they said.
But they said they called to the house in 2003 in an effort to locate him and spoke with gardaí immediately afterwards.
In a statement which was read into the record, the family said: “At that time, we were unaware that Tim owned the property, which made us hesitant to enter the house without resorting to breaking and entering.
“We spoke with local residents and sought assistance from the local gardaí.
“The prevailing narrative among local residents and the gardaí at the time was that Tim had possibly returned to the UK.
“We assumed the gardaí would carry out a welfare check to confirm the house was vacant.
“However, we know now that this was not done.
“As a family, we acknowledge that we should have done more to locate our brother.
“However, we also believe that the gardaí and the local authorities involved could have shown more care and due diligence in this matter.” They said the decision by the local authority to board up the house without conducting internal checks highlights one of the many shortcomings in the current derelict sites processes.
They said that act “surely concealed the truth” about Tim’s whereabouts for even longer.
“We do not seek to lay blame, but rather to emphasise to all parties involved that more could have been done,” they said.
“Moreover, we are deeply concerned that this tragedy may not be an isolated incident.
“We firmly believe that the current derelict housing legislation in Ireland is insufficient. The existing system and processes seem inadequate.
“Sending notification letters to the derelict house, erecting a notice and waiting extended periods, often exceeding 12 months, before commencing the CPO process, is an impediment to timely intervention.
“Furthermore, local authorities appear to not have the authority to conduct the necessary legal searches in both the Registry of Deeds and Land Registry to determine the owner and to carry out subsequent searches to contact any next of kins before initiating or during the CPO process.” They urged the coroner to request a comprehensive review of the derelict sites legislation and processes for a more “compassionate, efficient, and proactive system”.
“Coroner, we ask for your help in ensuring that no family goes through what we have experienced,” they said.
Dr Kennedy assured the family that he would bring their plea to the attention of the relevant government ministers.