Fiona Donohoe, the mother of 14-year-old Noah Donohoe, arrives at Belfast Coroner’s Court(Image: Liam McBurney/PA Wire)

The storm drain where Noah Donohoe’s body was discovered was in good condition and had no history of unauthorised access, the inquest into the teenager’s death has heard.

Noah, a pupil at St Malachy’s College, was 14 when his naked body was found in a water tunnel in north Belfast on June 27 2020, six days after he left home on his bike to meet two friends in the Cavehill area of the city.

A post-mortem examination found the likely cause of death was drowning.

Jonathan McKee, a director in the Department for Infrastructure (DFI), appeared at the inquest, which is in its 14th week, on Thursday morning.

He said the drain was “relatively uncomplicated for a culvert in an urban area” and “was and is in good condition”.

He added that before June 2020 the DFI had “no record of members of the public or elected representatives reporting concerns” about the safety of a screen on the structure’s opening or about children or adults gathering at it.

There was no other evidence such as graffiti or litter to suggest the pipe had been accessed, he added and said local residents are “vigilant and alert”, which would discourage unauthorised access and anti-social behaviour.

Mr McKee said it was not “an abandoned area of land, out of everyone’s view, susceptible to misuse or antisocial behaviour”.