Father's anger at inquest delay into daughter's Afghanistan death

Jun 11 2009 Ormskirk Advertiser

Sarah Bryant

A GRIEVING father is angry that the inquest into his daughter's death hasn't taken place a year after she was killed serving her country.

Corporal Sarah Bryant was killed when in Afghanistan's Helmand Province when the Snatch Landrover she was in struck a landmine on June 17 last year.

She was the first British woman soldier to die while serving in Afghanistan.

In the week before the first anniversary of her death her father Des Feely, who used to run the Red Lion pub in Burscough, has blamed the Ministry of Defence for delays to her inquest.

He said: “Unbelievably, it is now a year since Sarah was killed alongside her colleagues, Sean Reeve, Paul Stout, and Richard Larkin, yet we who are left behind have to find a reason to go on.

“When you have lost the person who is most precious to you in the world, there are days when you cannot find a reason at all.

“I believe the Ministry is delaying the inquest as it is embarrassed as to what the findings might be. Their vehicle was poorly armoured and not fit for purpose.

“With Sarah being the first British woman soldier to die in Afghanistan the inquest is bound to be high profile and it could be very embarrassing for the MOD.

“Other soliders who have died in action have already had their inquests so why are we still waiting for Sarah's hearing?

“We know some information, that Sarah took the full force of the blast, but the full tragic detail will come out in the inquest and that will be hard.

“Sarah's mum Maureen has already said she doesn't want to come to the inquest and her husband also went through a phase of not wanting to go.

“Someone should be there to hear what happened and that would just leave me Sarah's father. But with waiting dragging on there is no closure for us.”