Boy fell to death after slip at Cliffs of Moher - inquest

A 12-year-old boy fell to his death at Ireland's Cliffs of Moher after slipping in a puddle close to the edge, an inquest has heard.

Zhihan Zhao and his mother, both Chinese nationals, were with her friends at the beauty spot on the County Clare coast on 23 July last year when he walked ahead of the group.

The coroner embraced Zhihan's distraught mother after recording a verdict of accidental death.

The accident was the second fatal fall at the Cliffs of Moher within a three-month period last year.

Warning: this story contains details some may find distressing.

Zhihan and his mother, Xianhong Huang, had arrived in Ireland 12 days before his fatal fall.

In her deposition, Ms Huang said that Zhihan was walking ahead of her on the Cliffs of Moher trail when she lost sight of him.

"My son walked very fast and was ahead of us by 50 metres," she said.

"As there was only one path, I thought we would meet him along the way.

"When I didn't, I walked to the visitor centre and I checked the visitor centre."

Unable to find him at the visitor centre, she returned to the path to search for him and when there was no sign of him, she reported him missing.

Ms Huang said she had last seen Zhihan at 13:00 that day and the court heard she had provided gardaí (Irish police) with a photo of him she had taken earlier on the trail.

Speaking through an interpreter at the inquest in Kilrush, County Clare, Ms Huang, wiping away tears, asked: "What exactly caused Zhihan to fall from the cliffs">The leaders of the US and China agree to further talks aimed at reaching a deal amid an ongoing trade war.