This week's inquest into the Buncrana pier tragedy was a harrowing revisiting of the awful day in March last year when five people lost their lives in a catastrophic accident.
Driver Sean McGrotty, his sons Evan (8) and 12-year-old Mark, their grandmother Ruth Daniels and her 14-year-old daughter Jodie Lee, died when their car slid into the sea from the algae-covered slipway in the Co Donegal town.
It would have been exceptionally difficult for all involved to relive this shocking incident and to hear especially distressing details.
But when such a dreadful loss of life occurs, it is important to examine what happened, provide answers where possible and hopefully help to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
The two-day inquest heard testimony from eyewitnesses to the disaster as well as rescuers who arrived quickly on the scene and who worked to save the family.
In particular, Davitt Walsh, who swam out to the car and brought the only survivor, Mr McGrotty's four-month-old daughter Ríoghnach-Ann, to safety, was praised for his courage.
There is no doubt that had Mr Walsh not acted as he did, with no regard for his own safety, this child would have perished along with the rest of the family.
There was clear heroism on display from Mr Walsh and also from Mr McGrotty, who could have escaped the car but chose not to after he handed the baby to her rescuer.
We have also seen incredible courage from Louise James, who lost her partner, sons, mother and sister in this unspeakable tragedy.
Bishop Donal McKeown spoke for many when he expressed admiration for her remarkable dignity and strength in the face of unimaginable loss.
Speaking after a jury found her family had died by misadventure, Ms James said she felt 'disbelief, pain and anger.'
Saying that this was 'an accident waiting to happen', she believes the slipway should have been closed to the public or proper warning signs displayed.
It is alarming that basic safety measures were not in place, particularly as the inquest heard there had been a number of similar incidents in the past.
One key lesson that must be learned is that safety must be the priority at slipways and piers throughout Ireland. It should be standard practice for warning signs, gates and other life-saving measures to be installed.
Valuable advice was also provided on what to do if a vehicle enters the water with one expert recommending drivers carry an inexpensive tool to break windows in an emergency.
A number of other issues were identified during this inquest which need to be acted upon to ensure that we never again see lives lost in this way.
