A fifth body has been discovered at the scene of the M9 motorway crash near Athy, Ireland, after a BMW was driven the wrong direction down the northbound carriageway. The body of another young male was found in the wreckage of one of the vehicles on Sunday afternoon, according to sources.
Crash Details
The crash occurred around 3am on Sunday morning when a BMW was travelling southbound against traffic and collided with a car carrying four members of an extended family. Initially, it was suspected that four young males had died, but the discovery of the additional victim has raised the death toll to five. All victims are understood to be young males, and it is believed all were from the car travelling the wrong way.
The collision happened on the M9 northbound near Castledermot, Co Kildare. Three women in the other car, one in her 20s and two in their 30s, sustained injuries, as did a seven-year-old child. The child is believed to have suffered a broken leg and is receiving treatment at the Children's Health Ireland Hospital in south Dublin.
Injuries and Response
The woman in her 20s was seriously injured and is being cared for at St Luke's Hospital in Kilkenny. The two other women are receiving treatment at Tallaght Hospital in south Co Dublin. A Garda spokesperson confirmed the incident occurred at 3am when one of the cars was travelling in the wrong direction.
Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly commented: "My thoughts are with those injured in this morning's collision on the M9. These family members were travelling innocently when they were struck by a vehicle being driven the wrong way down the motorway."
Commissioner's Remarks
Kelly added: "This horrific incident, following the recent collision on the M50, shows how irresponsible and dangerous driving on the wrong-side of the motorway is. That, of course, should be self-evident, but what makes this reckless behaviour even more appalling is that in some cases it is being done for social media likes regardless of the potentially devastating impact it might have on innocent people and themselves."
He noted that the incident has been referred to Fiosrú, the Police Ombudsman, and said: "I am constrained in what I can say in detail about this incident, but I know that Gardaí do what they can to stop such vehicles while also taking into consideration all other road users. Gardaí are put in a really challenging situation dealing with such incidents. As always, An Garda Síochána will fully cooperate with the Police Ombudsman investigation which I hope is completed as expeditiously as possible."
Kelly concluded: "My thoughts are also with all members of An Garda Síochána and the emergency services who had to deal with this awful incident this morning. Such incidents show the difficult work we ask our Gardaí to undertake every day to keep our communities safe."
