Man killed in Australia was due to return

THE young Irishman who died in a car crash in western Australia on Wednesday was due to return home after Christmas.

Front-seat passenger Colm Reilly, 20, from Slane, Co Meath, was killed instantly and his six companions — including one found in the car boot — were injured in a crash in a Perth suburb.

All of the injured, apart from an English woman passenger, came from the south Meath/north Dublin area.

Constituency TD Shane McEntee said the community was trying to come to terms with the tragedy. “It’s just a disaster,” he said.

One of the dead man’s friends, Ciara Eileen Duncan, 20, from Navan is fighting for her life having sustained head injuries. Three other passengers were treated in hospital and discharged. Mr Reilly was a front-seat passenger. Four others were in the back seat. Rescuers confirmed another person was found in the car boot. The 25-year-old driver suffered a broken pelvis.

A police spokesperson said the Toyota Corolla hatchback went out of control, crossed to the wrong side of the road and crashed into a car driven by a 64-year-old woman, who was also injured. Police are examining whether alcohol played a role. The group are believed to have spent several hours at the Queen Hotel in Perth on the night of the crash, a police spokesperson said.

A 19-year-old woman from Liverpool, who received back injuries, had been due to return to Britain the day following the accident.

Mr Reilly was the son of Seamus, a minibus driver, and Mary Reilly, of Abbey View, on the outskirts of Slane. He is survived by his brother James and sister Thomasina. The tragedy struck just weeks before he planned to come home after his year-long trip to Australia. He was described by his brother James as a big Manchester United fan “who loved to have the craic”. Colm had spent several months working as a gold miner and recently finished a scaffolding course.

The Department of Foreign Affairs is providing consular assistance to the families through the embassy in Canberra and the honorary consulate in Perth.