A YOUNG GAA star killed at a Co Fermanagh cement factory was the victim of a "tragic, freakish accident", a court has heard.
Brian Óg Maguire (24), from Lisnaskea, died when he was hit by a steel cable which snapped at the Quinn concrete factory in Derrylin on September 13, 2012.
Quinn Building Products Ltd pleaded guilty in August to failing to ensure the safety of an employee and failing to maintain work equipment.
A prosecution barrister told Omagh Crown Court yesterday that although steel cables had snapped before, the company had kept no records of previous incidents.
He said health and safety breaches had led to the Fermanagh county footballer's death.
A barrister representing Quinn Building Products said Mr Maguire had been standing in a mesh safety cage when the cable snapped and whipped backwards.
He said the company had accepted responsibility for the "terribly unlucky accident, a freakish accident" and had taken "significant steps to enhance safety procedures" so that a "similar, tragic accident could not happen".
A judge will decide in a fortnight how much the company should be fined for two breaches of health and safety legislation.
