Clodagh Cogley.
Clodagh Cogley, one of the seven survivors of the Berkeley balcony collapse, has returned home to Dublin six weeks after the tragic accident which took the lives of six students.
The 21-year-old arrived at Dublin Airport on an Aer Lingus flight from San Francisco at 12.20pm on Friday, the Irish Times reports.
Cogley, who suffered extensive damage to her ribs, lungs and spine, had been receiving treatment at the brain and spinal cord injury rehab facility in the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center. She was expected to remain in the US for a further two months. At the end of June, she revealed via social media that her chances of ever using her legs again were “bleak.”
“The thing I’m taking from this tragedy is that life is short and I intend to honour those who died by living the happiest and most fulfilling life possible,” Cogley posted on Facebook.
Cogley, a third-year psychology student at Trinity College, is from Milltown in south Dublin. She is the daughter of TV3 director of broadcasting Niall Cogley and the grand-daughter of legendary rugby commentator Frank Cogley.
Cogley is the fourth student injured in the incident to return to Ireland in recent weeks. Seán Fahey, Conor Flynn and Jack Halpin have already made their way back home, while Hannah Waters, Niall Murray and Aoife Beary remain in Santa Clara.