triple tragedy | 

Three people including baby boy die after horror road crash in Tipperary

The incident occurred shortly before 9pm this evening when a car hit a wall

Yesterday at 21:49

Three people, including a baby boy, have died after a horror crash in Co Tipperary this evening.

Two others were seriously injured in the single vehicle collision, the second multiple road tragedy to strike the county in less than a week.

The incident occurred shortly before 9pm this evening when a car hit a wall in the Windmill Knockbulloge area of Cashel.

“Gardaí can now confirm three fatalities as a result of this collision,” a spokesperson said in a statement tonight.

“The adult male and adult female rear seat passengers were pronounced deceased at the scene. Their bodies remain at the scene.

“An infant boy was also fatally injured during the collision; the body of the infant boy has been taken to Tipperary University Hospital, Clonmel.”

Gardai added that the male driver of the car and the female front seat passenger have been taken to Tipperary University Hospital with serious injuries.

It is understood there were several members of a family in the vehicle when the incident occurred on a minor road outside Cashel town.

The road in Windmill Knockbulloge is currently closed to traffic with local diversions in place.

Gardai and emergency services remain at the scene. The road will remain closed overnight and into tomorrow.

Garda Forensic Collision Investigators (FCI) have been asked to conduct an examination of the scene which will take place tomorrow, the spokesperson added.

An incident room has been established at Cahir Garda Station and a Senior Investigating Officer has been appointed to lead the investigation.

Gardaí are appealing for any witnesses to this collision to contact the investigation team.

“Any road users who may have camera footage (including dash-cam) and were travelling in the Windmill Knockbulloge area near Cashel between 8.30pm and 9.15pm this evening are asked to make this footage available to Gardaí,” a spokesperson said.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact Cahir Garda station on 052 617 7640, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.”

Earlier this evening gardai said its members were in the process of informing the families of the deceased.

The tragedy comes just days after the nearby town of Clonmel was left reeling at the deaths of three Leaving Cert students and one of their brothers at the Mountain Road in the town on Friday evening.

Zoey Coffey, Nikki Murphy and Grace McSweeney (18) and Luke McSweeney (24) died when the car being driven by Luke overturned as they made their way to a celebration of the girls’ Leaving Cert results. Their funerals will take place in the coming days.

News of tonight’s tragedy was only filtering through the area on Tuesday night, with local people stunned by the news.

Local councillor in Cashel and Cathairleach of the Cashel Municipal District Cllr Declan Burgess (FG) said ‘’Awful news in our town of Cashel’’.

He added: “My thoughts and prayers are with the families involved. It is a devastating blow for our community’’.

Local TD Mattie McGrath (Indp) said “More heartbreak for our community as a number of people are believed to have been killed in a crash near Cashel. My thoughts and prayers are with all those involved, their families and the emergency services dealing with another tragic event.”