‘Miracle’ more weren’t killed in fatal crash

IT was “a miracle” more people weren’t killed when a crash involving two cars travelling at speeds of up to 180km/h claimed the life of one of the drivers, an inquest heard yesterday.

Two high-performance Audi cars clipped off each other while travelling at high speed along a regional road between Cashel and Rosegreen in south Tipperary on July 12, 2008, resulting in the death of Raymond Cunningham, aged 24, from Tullamaine, Fethard, Co Tipperary.

He was travelling alone in a red Audi TT while the other car involved in the crash, a black Audi A5 being driven by Joe O’Leary, aged 38, became airborne and crashed into the gable end of a house, pinning a young boy underneath it.

The boy, Jack Costello, aged 9, was at a family gathering at his grandmother’s house at Price’s Lot, Cashel, and was saved when his father, John Costello, used a forklift truck to remove the black Audi.

He has since made a partial recovery, yesterday’s inquest into Mr Cunningham’s death heard, at Clonmel courthouse. His grandmother’s house was deemed “unsafe” and had to be demolished.

Two teenage boys — Mr O’Leary’s son Raymie and friend David McGeer — were passengers in Mr O’Leary’s black Audi and were injured in the crash.

David McGeer, who was 13 at the time, said he met his friend Raymie in Cashel on the night of Saturday, July 12, and they were then being driven home by Joe O’Leary.

When they got to the roundabouts outside Cashel, on the Rosegreen road, they spotted the red Audi coming from the Fethard direction and Raymie said “that’s a class car” to his father.

Joe O’Leary “said nothing but looked at Raymie,” and then drove behind the other car, at high speed. It was after an attempted overtaking manoeuvre by Mr O’Leary that the two cars came into contact.

He was jailed last year after admitting dangerous driving causing death and dangerous driving causing serious bodily harm.

“The speeds were phenomenal in this instance,” forensic collision investigator Sergeant John Moore told the inquest.

Coroner Paul Morris described the driving by both Mr O’Leary and the late Mr Cunningham as “pure madness” on the night in question. “Nearly about half a dozen of them could have been killed.”

Mr Cunningham, who was travelling alone in the red Audi TT, was thrown from the car after it was clipped by Mr O’Leary’s Audi and spun out of control, landing on its side.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Pathologist Dr Robert Tait concluded after a postmortem examination that death was due to “multiple injuries” including extensive bleeding into the brain and the chest cavity, consistent with a road accident.

The jury in the inquest returned a verdict of accidental death, consistent with the medical evidence.

Solicitor for the Cunningham family, Peter O’Reilly, said it was “pure happenstance” that the two drivers of two similar cars were on the same stretch of road together on the night of July 12, 2008, as they didn’t know each other.

“It makes it even more extraordinary,” the coroner said upon hearing that.

“I have to register how appalled myself and the jury are at the speeds both parties were going on the evening in question, and the potential for total havoc.

“It’s a miracle that more people weren’t more seriously injured or fatally injured.”