A LIMERICK family have rushed to Australia to be at the bedside of a man who is in serious condition in a Sydney hospital after being hit by a car driven by a woman who was allegedly under the influence of alcohol.
The road incident took place in the early hours of Sunday morning (local Australian time), as the cyclist was riding his e-bike.
The man, who is understood to be 29 years old and originally from Foynes, County Limerick, was hit by a car on South Dowling Street in Moore Park, Sydney, as he cycled his e-bike at 3.45am in the early hours of Sunday February 4 (4.45pm on Saturday Irish time).
He was taken to St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney in a serious condition, with Australian news outlets reporting that the Limerick man was left with “visible tyre marks on his chest and pelvis” after the accident.
It is understood that the man’s family have rushed to Sydney be at his bedside.
The driver, a woman in her mid-20s, was arrested at the scene following a positive roadside breath test that showed she was well over the local legal alcohol limit.
She was taken to Surry Hills Police Station to take a secondary breath test, returning a a reading of 0.095, almost twice the legal alcohol limit.
The woman was later taken to St Vincent’s Hospital to undergo mandatory blood and urine testing.
The driver was reportedly clad only in leather lingerie at the time of the incident.
A crime scene was established at the scene of the incident, with specialist officers from the Crash Investigation Unit attending to examine the scene. It is believed that the man was found unconscious on the road and sustained injuries believed to be consistent with being run over by a car.
According to Australian media outlets, a taxi driver who was in the area at the time and witnessed the accident had provided assistance to the Limerick man before emergency services arrived. He has reportedly given dashcam footage to New South Wales Police.
The driver of the car has since been charged with drink driving offences and will appear before court on March 14. She has not yet been given any specific charges in relation to hitting the Limerick man.
The woman, according to Australian media, previously served a seven-month driving ban for drink-driving.
