LIMERICK is mourning its dead following a seventh death on Limerick roads, three more road fatalities in the first three months of this year than in the whole of 2015.
The latest fatality was on Tuesday night after a man in his 20s was killed when his car hit a van shortly after 7:30pm.
The man, who has named locally as Michael Madigan (26) from Farrilly, Broadford died in the road traffic collision on Hyde Road and three people, including a young girl, were hospitalised as a result. Mr Madigan was a passenger in the car.
On Monday, Shane Mulcahy (35), a single man from Herbertstown, died when his car went off the road about two miles from the County Limerick village.
This is the second road tragedy to visit the Mulcahy family after deceased man’s teenage sister Naomi, died 13 years ago when she was just 16 as a result of a car crash that also claimed the lives of two other teenagers.
In the wake of two tragedies in one week, Limerick motorists have been reminded to take great care on the roads as the St Patrick’s Day and Easter break is upon us.
In a joint campaign, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) and An Garda Siochana are asking all road users to act responsibly and safely on the roads.
In particular, drivers are being warned of the dangers of driving the morning after a night of drinking where their driving could still be significantly impaired by alcohol.
RSA chief executive Moylagh Murdock said: “It’s also important the morning after the night before, as you may still be over the limit without realising it. It takes an hour for the body to get rid of one unit of alcohol, that’s a half pint or standard glass of wine. If you got to bed in the early hours and didn’t get a good night’s sleep, this will magnify the impairing effects of any alcohol in your system,” she said.
In the five year period from 2011 to 2015, a total of 15 people nationally lost their lives and a further 34 people were seriously injured in road collisions between March 16 and 18.
