Four women die on roads over weekend
The Kilkenny crash, involving a car and a pedestrian, occurred at around 9pm on the N76 at Westcourt Demesne in Callan. File picture
Four women were killed following weekend road crashes, with the death of a woman on Monday from injuries after being struck by a car in Kilkenny on Friday adding to three on Sunday.
As the names of two women killed in a crash near Mallow in Cork on Sunday emerged, gardaí in Kilkenny renewed an appeal for witnesses to Friday night’s incident on the N76 at Westcourt Demesne in Callan after the death of a woman who was seriously injured in that incident.
The woman, who was in her 30s, died at St Luke’s Hospital in Kilkenny on Monday. She was injured when she was hit by a car while walking in the area of Westcourt Demesne at around 9pm on Friday night.
It is understood that she was a foreign national.
Meanwhile, one of the women killed in a car crash near Mallow on Sunday was returning home from spending time with her mother for Mother’s Day.
Susan O’Sullivan was returning to her home in Mallow after visiting her mother in Boherbue with her two young children, when her car was involved in a collision with a vehicle driven by Mary Coughlan, from Kings Square in Mitchelstown.
Both women were pronounced dead at the scene following the head-on collision at Navigation Road on the N72 Mallow/Killarney Road, just before 4pm on Sunday.
The young boy and girl travelling with Ms O’Sullivan were taken to Cork University Hospital for treatment for serious but non life threatening injuries. They are aged five and eight.
Emergency services attended the scene within minutes, with traffic diversions put in place following the collision while gardaí inspected the scene to try to determine the cause of the tragedy.
The Millstreet-based air ambulance was put on standby to support emergency services. It is understood that some passing motorists also stopped to offer help at the scene.
The two dead women’s remains were taken to the Cork city mortuary for autopsies.
Cllr Bernard Moynihan said he personally knew her and her family in Boherbue, who he described as a lovely, hardworking family. “Duhallow is shocked by this,” he said.
Mitchelstown councillor Deirdre O’Brien described the incident as a tragedy and extended her sympathies to the family of Ms Coughlan, who had been living in the town for many years.
Fine Gael TD for Cork North West, John Paul O’Shea, said the crash was a terrible tragedy on a road which is typically very busy. “I am very saddened to hear we have a number of fatalities and people who are seriously injured,” he said.
They were among three women to lose their lives on the roads on Sunday. The third was a Polish native who lived in Tallow in west Waterford. She was killed following a three-vehicle collision on the N25 at Moonameen, Dungarvan, Co Waterford, at around 2.10pm. An autopsy was also being carried out on her remains on Monday while relatives in Poland were being notified of her death. She was a passenger in one of the three vehicles involved in the collision.
A driver and a passenger of one of the other cars were removed to University Hospital Waterford for treatment while the driver of the third car was taken to Cork University Hospital.
Labour Cllr John Pratt, who lives in Tallow, said the woman was part of the local community and was well liked in her adopted home.
No funeral arrangements had been published for the victims on Monday.
Gardai are continuing to appeal for witnesses to all three incidents to contact them, especially anyone who may have dashcam footage. Forensic investigations have been carried out at all scenes and the roads were reopened within hours of the three incidents.
Gardai in Kilkenny can be contacted on (056) 7775000 while Mallow gardaí can be reached at (022) 31450. Dungarvan gardaí can be contacted at (058) 48600. Witnesses may also contact the Garda confidential line on 1800 666111.
