Knocknaheeny mourns loss of teenagers in car crash

THE loss of one young life is tragic, but the loss of two in a tight-knit community on the northside of Cork city has been described as almost unbearable.

People huddled in stunned disbelief at the city’s Harbour View Road in Hollyhill yesterday morning as they viewed the wreckage of the two cars that had slid down an embankment, one of them crashing into a wall.

It resulted in the deaths of Cornelius James ‘CJ’ Dolan, aged 16, and Derry O’Callaghan, aged 19.

One elderly woman made the sign of the cross as she looked down on the wreckage of the Ford Mondeo in which the two teenagers had been travelling.

“It’s absolutely shocking. These young men had their whole lives in front of them. I will pray for them and their families,” she said.

A man who walked past a few moments later said he knew the family of one of the dead teenagers.

“I can’t imagine how I’d cope if it was one of my children who had died in that car. I don’t know how the families will ever be able to get over it,” he said.

CJ, as he was known in the community, was known for playing street leagues at St Vincent’s GAA Club and lived at Hollywood Estate, just yards from the scene of the fatal accident.

He was described as a good athlete who was popular in the area.

On his bebo page CJ said he loved soccer, hurling, football and basketball.

He said he was happiest when he was “out with the boys” and “having the crack”.

Several of his friends posted tributes to him on the site yesterday.

One said: “RIP. You will never be forgotten.”

Local councillor Tony Fitzgerald said Derry O’Callaghan, who lived in Killala Gardens, was also very well liked in the community.

“The loss of these two young people is devastating to their families. It’s also devastating to their friends and the wider community as a whole,” Mr Fitzgerald said.

Gardaí sealed off a 100- metre section of the road between the Discount Fuel Deal Garage and the junction of the CIX building for several hours as forensic experts carried out a thorough examination of the scene.

The cars were later removed for further technical examination.

Postmortems on both men were carried out at Cork University Hospital.