Families mourn deaths of two friends

TWO families yesterday paid special tribute to the two students killed in a road accident in Portugal.

Paula O’Neill, aged 21, from Douglas, Cork and Aisling O’Loughlin, aged 22, from Rochestown, Cork, died when their car was struck by a train at a level crossing near Fao, the provincial capital of the Algarve.

The two third year students at University College Cork were studying marine ecology at the University of the Algarve as part of an Erasmus exchange programme. A 48-year-old German teacher travelling in the car was also killed and two Portuguese nationals, who were passengers in the car were seriously injured.