Passenger fights for his life after fatal Wicklow crash

A second man is fighting for his life following a crash in which the driver died.

Patrick ‘Paddy’ Connors, in his early 30s, died after his car hit the edge of a bridge in the Wicklow Mountains and catapulted off the road at 5.30pm on Sunday.

Mr Connors, a Traveller originally from London but living in Blanchardstown, north-west Dublin, was pronounced dead at the scene on Sean Kelly Bridge in the Sally Gap.

Mr Connors, born in 1979, was carrying two other occupants, also Travellers. All three are thought to be relatives.

The two passengers, from Tallaght in south-west Dublin, suffered serious injuries and were taken to Naas General Hospital. The men, aged in their early 30s and late 20s, were described on Sunday night as being in a serious, but not life-threatening, condition.

However, one of them deteriorated overnight and suffered from a suspected bleed in the brain. He was transferred to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin, the country’s head injury specialist centre. He was described as being in a critical condition.

The third man was transferred to Tallaght Hospital and is understood to have suffered very serious back injuries.

The Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission is conducting an investigation into the crash because gardaí became involved after officers saw the car driving past them.

A Garda jeep was driving in the opposite direction along the Sally Gap when they saw a silver Honda Accord, driving towards them at speed. When it passed, the jeep did a U-turn on the road and attempted to follow the car.

However, gardaí didn’t catch up and the car never came into their sights until they saw it overturned a few kilometres away at Sean Kelly Bridge.

They immediately alerted the emergency services and informed their superiors. They followed standard procedure in situations where there is a fatality and gardaí were involved in some way and alerted the Ombudsman Commission.

There is no evidence, however, to suggest the Garda vehicle was engaged in any kind of chase with the car.

The scene was sealed off pending the arrival of the commission and the Garda doctor, who pronounced Mr Connors dead at the scene.

A postmortem was conducted yesterday by assistant state pathologist Dr Khalid Jabaar.

Sources said the road was not suitable for driving at speed and the stretch bends sharply as it approaches Sean Kelly bridge and at even 50km a car would not make the turn.

* The commission is appealing for witnesses, or information, at 1890-600-800.