A mother of two from Newry, Co Armagh, suffered a catastrophic brain injury when a rickshaw she was travelling in crashed shortly after she left a Westlife concert in Dublin to meet her husband. Danielle O'Keane, 37, was injured on North Wall Quay at around 11pm on Saturday, and her family have described her condition as a “life ending brain injury”.
Crash after concert
Danielle had been at Westlife's show at the 3Arena with friends before setting off on what was meant to be a short rickshaw journey to meet her husband David and friends in the city centre. Within seconds, the vehicle struck a kerb and overturned, leaving her with catastrophic injuries. She was taken to Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, where she remains in intensive care on a ventilator.
Her brother-in-law Derek told the Irish Mirror: “It’s tragic. They went to the concert and they were leaving.
“My brother David (Danielle’s husband) was actually in the city centre with a couple of his friends. They were leaving to head up into the city centre to meet up with David.
“They got into a rickshaw. And it was only due to be a short journey up into the city centre.
“But I was talking to one of the girls that accompanied Danielle, and she was saying she was only on the rickshaw for a matter of seconds before it hit the curb and toppled over.
“And horrifically resulting in a catastrophic brain injury.”
Doctors' prognosis
Doctors have told the family that Danielle's injuries are believed to be fatal, and they are now awaiting brainstem testing before life support can potentially be withdrawn. Derek said: “The doctor sat us down and spoke to us, and he actually revealed that she's actually facing a life-ending brain injury.
“At the moment we're waiting for them, they're going through the process of confirming this.
“They do what's called a brainstem test, and this brainstem test verifies what they suspect from the MRI scan, CT scans.
“It’s basically the step before they decide to remove all aids and the ventilator.
“So there is nothing they can do. There’s no surgical intervention or nothing they can do to help.
“It’s just the process of waiting for them to officially turn off the machine. It’s heartbreaking.”
Planned family holiday
Danielle had been due to fly to Mallorca on Monday for her first family holiday with David and their two sons, aged five and two. The bags had already been packed for the trip.
Derek said Danielle had been “the most sweetest girl you’d ever meet”, adding that she was “full of life, full of energy” and has a “heart of gold”. He said: “They were a young family with the world at their feet. So much to look forward to. Being deprived of so many opportunities in life together as a family.”
A fundraiser has been launched to help Danielle’s family with bills and other costs, with more than €26,000 raised towards a €40,100 target.
Investigation and appeal
Gardaí are continuing to investigate the collision and have appealed for witnesses and dashcam footage. Anyone who travelled along North Wall Quay between 10.30pm and 11.15pm on Saturday, September 26, and may have footage is urged to contact Store Street Garda Station on 01 666 8000, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.
