Mother, originally from Rathvilly, reacts after children fall from balcony
Jayden and Nevaeh O'Neill (centre), who fell from a second-floor balcony in Waterford on Friday, with father Ryan O'Neill and mother Regina Smith, and siblings Jaxson (far left) and Alliyah (far right) Photograph courtesy of Regina Smith
“I’M very blessed that I have my kids here with me today. It’s very emotional – no parent should have to go through this,” said Rathvilly woman Regina Smith yesterday (Monday) after two of her children fell from a second-storey balcony on Friday.
The horrific accident took place at the Mount Suir apartments in Waterford city when two of Regina’s children â Jayden (3) and Nevaeh (7) â were playing on the balcony. The little boy fell 20ft onto the ground when a pane of glass gave way, with him narrowly missing being impaled on it when he hit the ground. His brave big sister Nevaeh went to grab him, but she also fell.
Regina (27) was busy with housework and had glimpsed the pair playing before hearing Nevaeh crying out her name from the ground below.
Nevaeh suffered minor injuries, but Jayden was rushed to Temple Street Hospital, Dublin with a bleed to the brain. He was released yesterday (Monday) but will be monitored by doctors, Regina told .
Regina is the daughter of Adrianne McCabe and Peter Smith and the family lived in Rathvilly before they moved to Grangecon, Co Wicklow, with Regina attending secondary school in Baltinglass.
She is now living and raising her family in Waterford with her partner, Ryan O’Neill.
The apartment block in which they live has been in the remit of Waterford City and Co Council since 2020 and has been the focus of numerous complaints about poor standards.
In the aftermath of the children falling off the balcony, the council held an emergency meeting on Friday afternoon, while it also warned tenants in Mount Suir to stay off the balconies until they have all been inspected. The council confirmed it has initiated a formal investigation around the circumstances of the incident.
Regina and Ryan also have two younger children â Jaxson and Alliyah â and, in the aftermath of the accident, the family are temporarily split and living with relatives because Nevaeh is traumatised by what happened in the apartment. Now that Regina and her children are out of their apartment, she said that her priority is getting her family back together in a home where they feel safe.
“I need my kids to feel safe. I just want my whole family to be together again,” said Regina.
