Student fell from Cliffs of Moher due to 'huge puddle' - inquest

Roxan Bastaens fell at the Cliffs of Moher in May 2024

A coroner has found that the death of a 20-year-old student who fell while walking at the side of a "huge puddle" on a trail at the Cliffs of Moher was "accidental".

Roxan Bastaens, who was a student at the University of Edinburgh, fell from the cliff edge in May 2024.

Three friends of Ms Bastaens gave eye-witness testimony at the Clare Coroner's Court in Kilrush, in County Clare, on Friday.

The county coroner said: "Unfortunately we have a number of deaths at the Cliffs of Moher each year and this was an absolute accident."

Warning: this article contains details some may find distressing.

'She wouldn't have suffered'

The coroner Isobel O'Dea added that the post-mortem examination found that Ms Bastaens died as a result of poly trauma as a result of a fall from a height.

Members of Ms Bastaens's family travelled to Kilrush for the inquest.

Ms O'Dea told them that her death "would have been instantaneous and she wouldn't have suffered".

The eye-witnesses were not present at the inquest, but statements from them to Gardai (Irish police) were read by Insp Ronan McMahon.

Italian student Guilia Bracchi said that "the trail was protected at the beginning but later on it got slippery and there was no barrier".

She also said conditions were calm, adding: "We all had hiking boots on. It was not difficult."

After 13:00 (local time) on 4 May, Ms Bracchi said they were walking single file as they approached a "big puddle".

"I had seen lots of people walking in exactly the same way before us," she said.

Ms Bracchi said that Ms Bastaens had her camera in her hand and was looking at her steps as she walked.

"She fell forward and she started tumbling down and I tried to catch her but I couldn't. It all happened so fast."

"I looked down and I saw her hit off the cliffs twice and then she then went out of sight."

Ms Bracchi said later she could see Roxan's body face down in the water.

'Awful fright'

Catherine Didier, from France, who was walking in front of Roxan, said: "I walked past the puddle no problem.

"I balanced and I didn't slip - I had to be careful. When I passed the puddle I turned around and I saw Roxan slipping off the edge. I tried to lean towards her to catch her but she was too far away - I got an awful fright, I started panicking."

"I didn't want to look over the edge," she said.

"We started calling people for help and we called the emergency services."

Student Prune Dussud said: "One second Roxan was there and the next she was gone."

"At this point I was looking down at my feet. I heard my friend Guilia gasp. When I looked up I was aware that Roxan had fallen. Everything had happened so quickly. I am not sure how it happened."

Ms Bastaens's remains were recovered from the water at 15:10 (local time) by an RNLI boat.

Her death was the second recorded accidental death at the cliffs in 2024, with a 12-year old boy also slipping in a puddle and falling over the edge the same year.

The Clare Local Development Company have closed off large sections of part of the Cliffs of Moher trail.