Found Deceased NI - Noah Donohoe, 14, North Belfast, 21 June 2020

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MsBetsy said:
Yes, it made me think of that case too. If he had a head injury it could have led to confusion or even psychosis or hallucinations.

That could explain his removing his clothes and unusual behavior. Maybe he was trying to hide in what he thought would be a safe place.

It's a very strange case. His family must be devastated, after so many days of searching and hoping to find him safe.
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Looked this up. Had never heard of her case. This is different however as he seemingly abandoned his coat (after falling off his bike, according to a witness) and, his belongings were found in different locations. His bag I imagine was lifted and once they announced what it looked like, someone panicked and told the police. His helmet was found at the bottom of Northwood drive (taken from Facebook and a mother saying her son found it there). Bike I imagine was abandoned at last known sighting (Northwood drive) before he scaled a fence and went wherever. Fact still remains, why was he going to that area.
 
Ironside said:
It is a bizarre death. I do believe it was an accident with no third party responsible however it’s such an unusual case I can also see why people don’t believe it.

I think the police may have some cctv footage that indicated Noah went in the drain of his own accord. They were insistent the entire time that he hadn’t left the area he was last seen in. The footage would show he was on his own and nobody was after him.
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This also explains why he disappeared out of sight, after his last sighting. Turns out he literally dropped out of sight. Heartbreaking stuff.
 
GraceB said:
They only requested CCTV a few days ago from some key places like the train station and church facing near where he was last seen. Maybe that's why people were stood down from searching? Because they had figured out he'd entered there.
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They definitely had cctv from the area he went missing in in the early stages of the enquiry. They may have obtained cctv from further out later on purely to rule out that he definitely hadn’t emerged from that area.
 
Ironside said:
They definitely had cctv from the area he went missing in in the early stages of the enquiry. They may have obtained cctv from further out later on purely to rule out that he definitely hadn’t emerged from that area.
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Last known sighting and the fact he was naked, was aquired from the CCTV of the home he was last seen at. Before climbing the fence. That's why the know he was naked at that stage. It's also why they have a time of when he was last seen. If you look at Newsletters timeline, you can see when they've obtained CCTV as times are stated. They only looked at further CCTV later on.
 
Ironside said:
They definitely had cctv from the area he went missing in in the early stages of the enquiry. They may have obtained cctv from further out later on purely to rule out that he definitely hadn’t emerged from that area.
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I am with you on this, CCTV must have been obtained to keep them searching in that area.

The drain he was found in was being searched days prior - they must have had a good idea that's where he was.

I can understand now why it took them so long to locate him, the system seems like a hellish place to negotiate through.

It truly is a bizarre case. My gut feeling is he sustained a bad head injury when fell off his bike.

This may be the cause of his seemingly confused state which led him to abandon his belongings and climb in the drain.

RIP Noah

Thank you to @HayLouise @Stella8 and all the other locals that have kept us up to date. Thinking of you all

Noah Donohoe always in our hearts: Tragic end to mystery which has haunted country all week as teen located deep in Belfast drain complex
 
GraceB said:
Looked this up. Had never heard of her case. This is different however as he seemingly abandoned his coat (after falling off his bike, according to a witness) and, his belongings were found in different locations. His bag I imagine was lifted and once they announced what it looked like, someone panicked and told the police. His helmet was found at the bottom of Northwood drive (taken from Facebook and a mother saying her son found it there). Bike I imagine was abandoned at last known sighting (Northwood drive) before he scaled a fence and went wherever. Fact still remains, why was he going to that area.
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Yes, she also had apparently removed her clothing either before or while she was in the tank.

The similarities to me are the sudden change of behavior and the seeking out such an unusual place to go. It is still not known what caused her behavior and we may never learn what led Noah to do the things he did.

In both cases it may be a result of changes in brain chemistry or function, one due to mental illness and or/ medication and in Noah's case an injury to the brain.

Imo
 
5 Signs & Symptoms of a Concussion in a Teenager or Child
Was there ever more of a description of his falling of his bike, like did he go up and over the handlebars because hit a hole in the road or did he sort of wobble side to side and fall over sideways. 14 year old boys don't generally just fall of their bikes, especially as he is described as a good athlete etc. If he didn't hit a hole and go over the bars and land on his head then it is hard to think he had a concussion because he was wearing a helmet. He also could have hurt his wrist badly because it is instinctive to put your arms out to break a fall. But, he is reported to have gotten up immediately and ridden off.
 
This is true but, the erratic behaviour wouldn't have had such a swift onset. We are talking about a round journey of not even 45 minutes. Also, it was halfway through that when he sustained a head injury. My husband has the boys out, in greenisland ,storm drains are padlocked. Why weren't those ones padlocked? It's awful no matter what. But things still aren't adding up for me. I hope I'm wrong and it's all just an unfortunate accident. Maybe it's confusing as police have had to be careful what they say also.
 
Acorunadepor said:
This also explains why he disappeared out of sight, after his last sighting. Turns out he literally dropped out of sight. Heartbreaking stuff.
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I wonder if he was lethargic or extremely tired when he entered the drain system and lost consciousness soon after he entered. He may have become lost and stopped to rest, and then fell asleep and never regained consciousness. The autopsy should indicate the TOD.
 
Rosiebones said:
5 Signs & Symptoms of a Concussion in a Teenager or Child
Was there ever more of a description of his falling of his bike, like did he go up and over the handlebars because hit a hole in the road or did he sort of wobble side to side and fall over sideways. 14 year old boys don't generally just fall of their bikes, especially as he is described as a good athlete etc. If he didn't hit a hole and go over the bars and land on his head then it is hard to think he had a concussion because he was wearing a helmet. He also could have hurt his wrist badly because it is instinctive to put your arms out to break a fall. But, he is reported to have gotten up immediately and ridden off.
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Precisely. Odd. It was a skateboarding helmet however. Which provides less protection but, still. The PM will show if there was brain damage. Other than that, there are still questions.
 
MsBetsy said:
Yes, she also had apparently removed her clothing either before or while she was in the tank.

The similarities to me are the sudden change of behavior and the seeking out such an unusual place to go. It is still not known what caused her behavior and we may never learn what led Noah to do the things he did.

In both cases it may be a result of changes in brain chemistry or function, one due to mental illness and or/ medication and in Noah's case an injury to the brain.

Imo
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But Noah isn't known to have been bi polar. Erratic behaviour wouldn't have been usual. This has been said by his family and anyone who has known him. The book he had may prove that he was struggling with certain things however.
 
GraceB said:
Precisely. Odd. It was a skateboarding helmet however. Which provides less protection but, still. The PM will show if there was brain damage. Other than that, there are still questions.
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Yes, skateboarding helmets do not provide the same amount of protection, especially for the back of the head. They are not sturdy enough to handle the force that can happen in a bike accident.

My daughter has both and we were told that a bike helmet is good for skateboarding but not necessarily the other way around.

Also, teenagers may be likely to suffer more symptoms from a concussion than adults because their brains are not fully developed yet. Jmo
 
Rosiebones said:
5 Signs & Symptoms of a Concussion in a Teenager or Child
Was there ever more of a description of his falling of his bike, like did he go up and over the handlebars because hit a hole in the road or did he sort of wobble side to side and fall over sideways. 14 year old boys don't generally just fall of their bikes, especially as he is described as a good athlete etc. If he didn't hit a hole and go over the bars and land on his head then it is hard to think he had a concussion because he was wearing a helmet. He also could have hurt his wrist badly because it is instinctive to put your arms out to break a fall. But, he is reported to have gotten up immediately and ridden off.
Click to expand...

The poor lady who witnessed the bike fall has no doubt been in pieces wondering about what if. There hasn't been much detail given about the fall other than the location. I can't find the details now as there have been so many news articles but I believe he tumbled in to the road and she did not categorically say in any news report that I can remember that he hit his head. Its just possible that he did.

Kids do fall of bikes all the time. My sons friends have countless falls by hitting a kerb, too fast, lack of concentration etc... If going at any speed it's easy to have a bad fall if something causes you to lose control momentarily
 
GraceB said:
But Noah isn't known to have been bi polar. Erratic behaviour wouldn't have been usual. This has been said by his family and anyone who has known him. The book he had may prove that he was struggling with certain things however.
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Right, that's why I said in his case it may have been due to a brain injury.

Also, we don't know what his medical condition was at that time. There are other things that can affect the brain, such as viruses or neurological problems. The ME should be able to rule that out and determine whether or not he had a concussion and how severe it was. Symptoms can begin within an hour or after several days. Maybe he even hit his head before that but never told anybody. Kids who are athletic sometimes fall, get right back up and don't think much of it at all.
 
MsBetsy said:
Right, that's why I said in his case it may have been due to a brain injury.

Also, we don't know what his medical condition was at that time. There are other things that can affect the brain, such as viruses or neurological problems. The ME should be able to rule that out and determine whether or not he had a concussion and how severe it was. Symptoms can begin within an hour or after several days. Maybe he even hit his head before that but never told anybody. Kids who are athletic sometimes fall, get right back up and don't think much of it at all.
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It could be. But my sister who is a trained nurse and then midwife, said it wouldnt happen so swiftly. That's all I'm going on. However, correct he could have hit his head prior. I just would never get into a storm drain at my age. Disoriented or not, there are lots of logistics to even doing so.
 
GraceB said:
It could be. But my sister who is a trained nurse and then midwife, said it wouldnt happen so swiftly. That's all I'm going on. However, correct he could have hit his head prior. I just would never get into a storm drain at my age. Disoriented or not, there are lots of logistics to even doing so.
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Well, I think each case is unique but it is very unusual to happen so fast. If he already had an existing problem it could have been made worse after the fall, or maybe even caused the fall to begin with.

Hopefully the family will have answers soon. We may not hear much more unless they suspect foul play or they decide to open an inquest. I don't know how long the Coroner's investigation normally takes there but I believe an inquest can be made once that is complete.

Maybe someone here can answer that.

Imo
 
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