Woman, 70, hit by garda car

A WOMAN in her 70s was in a serious condition in a Dublin hospital last night after she was struck by a garda patrol car.

It is believed that the woman was waiting at a bus stop on Clonskeagh Road when the accident took place shortly before 4pm.

Onlookers said the patrol car was travelling with its siren sounding when the collision took place near Clonskeagh Hospital just before 4pm.

Gardaí could not confirm if the officers were involved in a high-speed chase when the incident took place.

The woman was receiving treatment at St Vincent’s Hospital last night and the two garda officers who were in the patrol car have been treated for shock.

The bus shelter was destroyed in the collision and the garda car was badly damaged. Electricity had to be cut off at the shelter before the garda car could be removed.

The area between Eglinton Road and Beech Hill Road was closed off for a period but was reopened last night. The car was being examined by forensic gardaí.

Detectives at Donnybrook, who are investigating the crash, have appealed for anyone who was in the area at the time and witnessed the incident to contact them.

Meanwhile, two men in their teens died in car accidents in the South and Mid-West over the weekend.

In West Cork, Kieran O’Sullivan, 17, died in an accident at Clonee, near Durrus.

In Quilty, Co Clare, 18-year-old David McCarthy died when the car he was in hit a wall.