Two young men killed in Limerick crash had lives ‘cut very short,’ says principal as students were friends in nearby Salesian Agricultural College

In Co Limerick, two young men, aged 19 and 20, were killed in a single-vehicle road crash and two other young men were injured.

All four young men were students of Salesian Agricultural College in Pallaskenry in County Limerick, just kilometres away from the scene of the fatal collision.

Principal Derek O’Donoghue offered his sincere sympathies from both the students and staff to the immediate family and friends of the students who tragically lost their lives.

Mr O’Donoghue said he wishes the two other students in the car, who sustained non-life threatening injuries a “good and speedy recovery” in University Hospital Limerick (UHL).

“The third cohort of students are the classmates of those. Our concern goes to those that we will provide support for over the coming days and weeks,” he told the Irish Independent.

He added that the students, who fall under the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) umbrella, were living on the campus, and were undertaking a Higher Cert in Agricultural Mechanisation course.

“The fact that they are residential here means that they are a tighter knit community of students. Not alone are they in college but all the students live here and go home at the weekends,” he added.

Mr O’Donoghue stressed that TUS counselling support services were on hand at the college to meet students and staff at the campus today following the tragic news.

Speaking to RTÉ’s News At One, Mr O’Donoghue said all four students had just returned after eight months of placement and were on their “final stretch of their two year course”.

“They had great career prospects ahead of them, a great life ahead of them and unfortunately for two, it was cut very short last night,” he said.

It is understood that all four students were in the same year. The driver and another passenger, both men aged in their late teens, are receiving treatment for non-life threatening injuries.

Minister of State for the Department of Transport Jack Chambers said the deaths of the two young men is "absolutely devastating".

“I just want to express my condolences to the Salesian Agricultural College and the wider community in Limerick. I know how much grief this will bring to everyone involved and to their families.

“They had so much ahead of them in their own lives,” he told RTÉ’s News At One.

Mr Chambers said the trend that we saw with road fatalities in 2023 has persisted, with 32 lives lost already this year on Irish roads.

“In particular the number of young people we are seeing losing their lives on the road. My condolences to everyone involved in the events of the last 24 hours,” he said.

“We are taking a very evidence-based approach in trying to address the worrying trends that is why last week I brought through the road traffic legislation which went through the second stage of the Dáil.

“That road traffic legislation is due to go before the Oireachtas Transport Committee next week and we hope to progress that through quickly so we can underpin reforms that will make a difference , which very much focused on lifesaver offences,” he said.

He explained that guidance will be given to local authorities regarding speed limits once the legislation is enacted in order to “synchronise this nationally”.

“We hope to see a lot of the changes in speed limits happen before the end of the year,” he added.

Mr Chambers stressed that it contains a number of important reforms “that will make a difference”.

Meanwhile, Cathaoirleach Cllr Adam Teskey, who is from Askeaton and is a former student of the college expressed his “immense sympathies” to all the families involved.

“This is not only a tragic day for us here in the greater Askeaton area but for the individuals and for their families in their respective areas.

“There is a wider family at a grief and at a loss,” he said, speaking of the student’s college.

Cllr Teskey also said “an immense sense of gratitude has to be extended to the first responders” including the gardaí, ambulance services and the fire brigade.

Gardaí, the National Ambulance Service and four units of the fire brigade responded to the collision, including two units each from nearby Rathkeale and Foynes.

Cllr Teskey added that the stretch of road along the N69 is “no stranger to fatalities, to major collisions and crashes” and that part of the road “doesn’t’ even have a hard shoulder”.

It is understood that the vehicle they were travelling in had struck a concrete pier at the entrance to farmland at about 7.25pm.

The fatal collision was the second collision on the same stretch of road in the space of 12 hours, after a second unrelated non-fatal collision took place at 7am yesterday.

Cllr Teskey added: “It is not fit for purpose to be a national road route. Not for today’s volume of traffic.”

This brings the total number of deaths on Irish roads so far this year to 31.This includes a young girl (6) who died a week after a car crash in Westmeath on February 8

Meanwhile, in Co Mayo, a man in his forties is in a critical condition and a young girl was also injured after they were struck by a car on a street in Ballina.

The incident happened at approximately 6.25pm.

The male pedestrian is currently in a critical condition at Mayo University Hospital.

The child is also receiving treatment. Her injuries are understood to not be life-threatening

The road is currently closed with local diversions in place. An examination by Garda Forensic Collision Investigators will take place this morning.

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

Any road users who may have camera footage (including dash-cam) and who were travelling in the area at the time, are asked to make this footage available to Gardaí.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact Ballina Garda Station 096 20560 or any Garda Station.

Road deaths

Road deaths remain stubbornly high despite a determined Garda road safety crackdown and increased driver awareness promotions by the Road Safety Authority (RSA).

Now, a total of 30 people have died on Irish roads so far this year, one more than the number who lost their lives over the same period last year.

January last year proved one of the deadliest on Irish roads and set the tone for the worst year for fatalities recorded in over a decade, with 188 people dying on Irish roads in 2023.

Three counties – Dublin, Kildare and Carlow – have recorded three deaths each over the first seven weeks of this year. Three other counties – Cork, Mayo and Meath – have recorded two deaths each over the same period.

RSA chairperson Liz O’Donnell said the recent uptick in road fatalities was “a cause of serious concern” while Taoiseach Leo Varadkar – a former transport minister – insisted on personally chairing a ministerial meeting last November on road safety initiatives and invited Susan Gray of road safety campaigners Parc to give a lengthy presentation to ministers, gardaí, Courts Service, representatives from the RSA and Medical Bureau of Road Safety, and senior civil servants.

Mr Varadkar, who lost a family member in a road tragedy, said he was alarmed by the spiral in road deaths over recent months.

He indicated he would chair another ministerial meeting on road safety to assess progress on various safety issues.

Parc said the continuing trend was concerning. “What is worrying is that the numbers have been going in the wrong direction in 2022 and in 2023,” said Ms Gray.

She described as “heartbreaking” the further decline in Garda Road Policing Unit personnel numbers, which are now 15pc below 2021 levels.

The latest Department of Justice analysis of garda staffing levels shows that personnel attached to Road Policing Units (RPU) last year had fallen to 632 personnel – 104 below the figure from just two years ago.

“In the same year 188 people died in road crashes, the highest number in almost a decade, we noted from the data that some counties suffered more losses – both in roads policing numbers and road fatalities – than others,” said Ms Gray.

Today's News in 90 Seconds - February 21st

However, there are concerns that priority has been given to allocation of new gardaí to the Dublin area in the wake of last November’s riots.

Compared to other counties, Dublin has – on a per capita basis – one of the safest rates of road usage in Ireland.

A major campaign has been under way to reduce road deaths nationwide by cracking down on speeding as well as drink and drug-driving.

RSA officials have already met with Garda Road Policing Unit officials to discuss the road death figures and to determine a response.

There is also concern over the proportion of fatal collisions which include young drivers, with 42pc of the lives lost involving those aged 35 and younger.

Men are now dying on Irish roads at a rate of five-to-one compared to women.

Gardaí have urged motorists to reduce their speed and said the priority for every motorist should be arriving safely at their destination. The RSA also urged motorists to allow extra time for journeys and to drive with care and consideration for other road users.