'Unclear' when car found with dead man in driver's seat left the road

Gardaí said Marcin Nowosielski had last been seen in the early hours of June 30.

Gardaí say it is "unclear" when a car found with a dead man in the driver's seat left the road.

Marcin Nowosielski, 47, was found dead in the car on Tuesday when emergency services were alerted to a vehicle found in a ditch on the roadside of the R395 at Teevrevagh, Castlepollard, in Co Westmeath.

Gardaí said Mr Nowosielski had last been seen in the early hours of June 30.

"It is currently unclear exactly when the car left the road, but it is believed to have occurred in the previous days," gardaí said.

Anyone with information on the movements of Mr Nowosielski or his car, a black Nissan Almera with registration 02 CE 3568, since the early hours of June 30 is being asked to come forward.

Gardaí are also appealing to any road users who were on the R395 at Teevrevagh, Castlepollard, between the early hours of June 30 and July 2, to contact Mullingar Garda Station on 044 938 4000.

The man is the second person to have been found dead after a road incident in the Castlepollard area in the last 24 hours.

A man in his 80s was killed following a two-car collision in the early hours of Wednesday morning on the R394 at Gartlandstown in Castlepollard.

The man, a passenger in one of the cars, was pronounced deceased at the scene. 

The car's driver, a woman in her 60s, sustained serious injuries in the crash. 

She has been taken to Midland Regional Hospital Tullamore for treatment. 

Gardaí said she is in a critical condition.

The driver of the second car, a man in his 30s, and the passenger, a man in his 20s, were also taken to Midland Regional Hospital Mullingar for treatment of less serious injuries.

It comes as a mother and daughter from Co Mayo were also killed in a crash involving a car and a lorry.

Aisling Moore, aged 46, and her eight-year-old daughter Abbigael Moore-Tournié died following a collision that occurred on Tuesday evening at Lismoran on the N26 between Foxford and Swinford.

Speaking about the four fatalities on Irish roads, Garda Press Officer Superintendent Liam Geraghty said on Wednesday that the recent incidents "tragically illustrate the dangers that can affect any of us". 

"No one sets out with the intention of causing or being involved in a traffic collision, especially one that results in fatalities. 

"We often take using our roads as a routine activity, yet it remains the most hazardous task we engage in daily.

"An Garda Síochána extends its deepest sympathies to all families mourning the loss of loved ones due to road traffic collisions.

"An Garda Síochána continues to appeal to all road users — no matter how you use the road — to exercise extreme caution and stay safe. 

"In particular, we urge all drivers to please slow down and protect everyone on our roads.”