Survivors of the head-on motorway crash that killed five teenagers on Sunday remain in a serious condition, police have confirmed in a major update. The teens were pronounced dead at the scene of the M9 crash in County Kildare, Ireland, in the early hours of Sunday morning (August 16). Irish police (Gardai) believe they were killed when they collided head-on at more than 74mph with a Hyundai containing three women and a 7-year-old boy.
Survivors' condition and hospitalisation
The survivors are all from the same family and were driving to Dublin airport to fly to England for a wedding. They were seriously injured and remain in hospital, the Irish Mirror reports. The 7-year-old boy is being treated at Crumlin Children's Hospital. It was reported on Monday (August 17) he suffered a broken leg. The female driver and front seat passenger remain critically ill in Tallaght University Hospital in south Dublin. The woman who was in the back seat beside the boy was in a serious condition at St. Luke's General Hospital in Kilkenny, but was later moved to St Vincent's Hospital in south Dublin.
Victims named and tributes paid
Two days after the incident shocked Ireland, the teenage boys were named as Jeremy O'Brien, 18, from Carlow; Alex McCarthy, 17, from Carlow; Joey Carthy, 15, from Athy, Kildare; Jack Kennedy, 17, also from Athy; and Kamil Pustkowski, 17, from Limerick. Their families and friends have paid tribute to them. Jeremy O’Brien’s mother, Margaret, posted: "Rest in heavenly peace, my beautiful son. Things will never be the same without you. You took a piece of my heart to heaven with you. It was such a privilege to be your mother. I am so proud of you." One post paying tribute to Joe Carthy said: "Why did it have to be you of all people? You would never see a bad bone in his body. He really was going to make something when he grew up." Tributes were also paid to Limerick-born Kamil Pustkowski. One pal said on TikTok: "Rest easy Kamil. Look over all of us." Another pal said: "Only spoke the other day and was planning to meet. My heart’s broken bro, missing ye already. We will all do ye proud brother."
Investigation update and social media clips
Police have also issued an update on the investigation into the crash. Initially, gardai believed teens wearing balaclavas had stolen the car after receiving reports of young suspects trying to break into vehicles and houses in nearby Athy at around 2am on Sunday. But cops are now satisfied the BMW was purchased by an associate of one of the teenagers legitimately for €1,100 (£940). The tragedy has sparked debate in Ireland over how the gardai should respond to such incidents, as officers did not pursue the vehicle when it drove the wrong way down the motorway. As detectives continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the crash, Fiosru, the police ombudsman, is also examining Garda contact with the BMW before the collision.
A video showing another car being driven against the flow of motorway traffic has also prompted calls for road safety enforcement in the wake of the horrific M9 crash. The clip, shared widely on social media, shows a vehicle travelling at speed while driving the wrong way down a busy road. The short video shows the car narrowly avoiding two oncoming heavy goods vehicles, with the second truck swiftly moving over to avoid a potential collision. It is one of a number of alleged joyriding clips that have surfaced in recent days following a crash on the M50 last week and Sunday's horrific head-on crash that claimed the lives of five teenagers. Representatives for frontline officers are now calling for appropriate pursuit training to deal with these incidents going forward.
The Irish Taoiseach, equivalent to Prime Minister, Micheal Martin said he was "shocked and saddened" at the tragedy, which he described as being the result of "an irresponsible and dangerous act". Mr Martin said such incidents are, in some cases, "being done for likes on social media". He said: "This is the second appalling crash we've seen on our roads in a matter of days as a result of the reckless driving of a car on the wrong side of the motorway, endangering the lives of innocent road users."
