Cork woman who 'seems to have had a medical incident' could not remember knocking cyclist off bike

Court heard woman suffered from type 2 diabetes and her GP indicated she had suffered from a low blood sugar incident at the time of the accident

Defendant knocked the cyclist off his bike and then left the scene, court heard. File picture

A Cork woman who hit a cyclist with her car, knocking him off his bike and then leaving the scene, could not remember the incident, the district court has heard.

Clonakilty District Court was told the incident occurred at 10am on May 25, 2025, at the “whales’s tail” roundabout at Croppy Quay, Youghals, in Clonakilty. The cyclist, who was cycling from Inchydoney to Clonakilty, came to the roundabout and was struck by car, which came from his left side.

The cyclist was knocked off of his bicycle and sustained minor injuries in the collision. Members of the public came to his assistance and the car involved in the accident reversed back and pulled into a nearby supermarket carpark. 

The car stopped in the carpark for “a couple of minutes” but the driver did not get out before driving away from the scene.

The driver of the vehicle was identified as Noelle O’Donoghue, aged 72, from Darrara, Clonakilty, Co Cork. O’Donoghue, who had no previous convictions, later made a statement and was fully cooperative with gardaí.

Defence solicitor Plunkett Taaffe said his client had no recollection of the incident. The court heard O’Donoghue suffered from type 2 diabetes and attended her GP soon afterwards, who indicated she had suffered from a low blood sugar incident at the time of the accident, which would also account for her memory loss.

The court was told O’Donoghue admitted she was the driver, was pleading guilty, had worked all her life, and was now a carer for her husband. 

Judge Joanne Carroll said O’Donoghue was a mature woman, who “seems to have had a medical incident” which led to the accident. She convicted O’Donoghue of careless driving and fined her €150, allowing four months to pay the fine.

This article is funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme