Gardai to question driver after three die in crash

Gardaí were last night waiting to interview the driver of the car involved in a fatal crash near Navan, Co Meath, early yesterday morning in which three people died.

Two of the dead were pedestrians who were hit by the car while walking beside the Dublin road about a mile outside of Navan.

Gardaí believe the third man had been travelling in the car but was thrown from the vehicle in the course of the impact.

The driver of the car, who is believed to be a non-national from eastern Europe, as well as another passenger were taken to Our Lady's Hospital in Navan following the accident. The passenger was later discharged.

Garda Supt Gerry Smith, of Drogheda Garda station, said last night the driver was stable in hospital and that his condition was not believed to be life-threatening. The man will be interviewed by gardaí either on discharge or when authorised by medical staff.

Supt Smith said that the two pedestrians who were killed were from the Ballivor area of Co Meath and from Co Carlow. Both men were in their late 30s and were believed to have been working in the Navan area.

They were named locally as Philip Quinn, from Ballivor, and Paul Lennon, from Co Carlow.

Supt Smith said the third victim was believed to be a non-national.

Gardaí were yesterday working on the theory that the two pedestrians were walking from Navan towards Johnstown, Co Meath, when they were hit by the car. The accident happened after 4am on Sunday at Kilcarn, about a mile from Navan on the Dublin road. The car, a silver-coloured Rover, was believed to be travelling towards Dublin.

Supt Smith said gardaí in Navan had received reports of a single-vehicle collision on the Dublin road at about 4.30am yesterday. Several ambulances, gardaí and fire brigade units attended the scene. A coast guard helicopter also carried out a search of the area using thermal imaging equipment.

The car, which was extensively damaged in the accident, remained at the scene for several hours yesterday.

The main N3 Dublin/Navan road was closed until yesterday afternoon as gardaí carried out a technical examination of the scene. The road reopened at around 3pm.

Supt Smith last night appealed to anyone walking or driving along the Navan/ Dublin road near Kilcarn between 4am and 4.30am yesterday to contact gardaí at Navan Garda station, tel 046-9021445.

He said there may have been people who had attended discos in Navan walking or driving in the area at the time.

The deaths in the Navan accident brought the number of people killed on the State's roads since the start of the year to eight.