Man ran over woman in car park

A MAN has been arrested on suspicion of drink-driving after accidentally running over a woman he had been socialising with in a bar minutes earlier, leaving her in a critical condition.

The incident happened as the man was reversing his car out of a car park of a bar in Co Cork where the middle-aged pair had been drinking together.

Gardaí believe the man and woman had left the bar together and were preparing to drive somewhere else when the accident happened. They say the man was reversing his car out of the car park and didn’t see the woman behind him.

The accident happened at the Castle bar in Main Street, Carrigtwohill, at 11.45pm last Sunday.

After knocking the woman to the ground the driver realised what he’d done and rushed back to the bar to raise the alarm. An ambulance rushed the seriously injured woman to Cork University Hospital where she was said to be in a critical condition. She is expected to be transferred to Tallaght hospital for specialist treatment.

Gardaí who arrived at the scene arrested the man on suspicion of drink-driving. A spokesman said the scene was sealed off for technical examination and the investigation was ongoing.

“We can confirm a lady in her 50s sustained serious injuries when struck by a car and a full investigation is in progress,” a spokesman said. He appealed for anybody who witnessed the accident to contact Cobh gardaí at 021-4908530.