LAST UPDATE | 21 Feb

TRIBUTES HAVE BEEN paid after two college students died and two others were injured after a single-vehicle crash in Co Limerick yesterday evening.

The incident occurred at around 7.25pm when a car hit a wall on the N69 at Ballyengland in Co Limerick.

Two male passengers, aged 19 and 20, died in the collision. They have been named locally as Darragh Dullea, (20), from Clonakilty, Co Cork and Cillian Kirwan, (19), from Piltown, Co Kilkenny.

The two other men including the driver and third passenger, from Charleville, Co Cork and Birr, Co Offaly, were taken by ambulance from the scene to University Hospital Limerick, where they were being treated or non-life threatening injuries.

The bodies of the deceased have been brought to mortuary at University Hospital Limerick, where post-mortems will be carried out.

Both Darragh Dullea and Cillian Kirwan were students at Salesian Agricultural College in Pallaskenry, Limerick, along with the driver and other passenger.

College principal Derek O’Donoghue told RTÉ that staff and students are “numb” after receiving the news.

He said the occupants are residential students, which is “an even tighter student body”, and that counselling support services are being made available to students and staff.

Local Fine Gael councillor Adam Teskey said the local community is “absolutely stunned” and “in a total state of shock after this immense tragedy”.

“Two families have suffered the ultimate loss of life and for that I want to express my sincere sympathies to them.”

There are approximately 200 students including 65 boarders from all over the country attending the college in Pallaskenry.

Separately, a man has died in hospital this evening after being struck by a car in Co Mayo yesterday. 

Gardaí are appealing to anyone who may have witnessed either collision to contact them.

Any road users who may have camera footage, including dash-cam, and who were travelling in the relevant areas at the time, are asked to make this footage available to gardaí.

Askeaton Garda Station can be reached on 061 601630 and Ballina Garda Station on 096 20560.

Road deaths

A total of 32 people have died in collisions so far in 2024, slightly higher than the equivalent figure for this point in 2023 (30).

Of the people who have died on the roads so far this year, 12 were drivers and 12 were passengers. A further five were pedestrians, two were motorcyclists, and one was a cyclist.

More than a dozen road collisions have occurred in February.

Previous incidents this month include Youghal, Cork; Kilmallock, Limerick; Ballinteer, Dublin 16; the M6 in Co Westmeath; Ashbourne, Co Meath; the M1 in Dublin; Glanmire, Co Cork; Bray, Co Wicklow; Nenagh, Co Tipperary; Foulkstown, Co Kilkenny; Kinsealy, Dublin 17; and Tramore, Co Waterford.

Minister of State for Road Safety Jack Chambers said that road traffic legislation will be put to the Oireachtas Transport Committee and that he anticipates it will advance quickly to underpin reforms this year.

“I believe these reforms will make a difference and are very much focused on life-saver offenses,” he said, speaking on RTÉ Radio One.

“Separately, we’re working with the Road Safety Authority on strengthening the campaigns and wider education initiatives,” Chambers said.

“We sanctioned additional spending for the Road Safety Authority towards the end of last year so there are increased awareness campaigns.”

He said there will also be an “absolute focus on enforcement”.

“To underpin new reforms or to ensure existing legislation works, we need to see improvement on  roads policing.” 

Additional reporting by Diarmuid Pepper and David Raleigh