A 24 year old motorcyclist was almost five times over the legal limit when he crashed and died early on Christmas morning.
The young man was travelling on the wrong side of the road when the accident happened on the Crumlin Road in Dublin at 3.43am on December 25th, 2016.
He had been socialising with friends at a party shortly before his motorbike collided with railings at the junction of Crumlin Road and Herbert Road.
Luis Alejandro Rios Cardenas, from Venezuela, had been living in Ireland for more than three years and worked in the kitchen of a Dublin restaurant.
On the morning he died, he was travelling from a party at a house in Crumlin towards Dolphin’s Barn.
His friend Miguel Fuenmayor said he spent around three hours at the party and drank rum, beer and a shot of Jagermeister.
“I heard him leave the driveway at speed. He always drove at speed. He was a bit crazy on the motorbike,” Mr Fuenmayor said.
The incident was witnessed by Detective Garda Paul Lynch, who looked out the window of Sundrive Road Garda Station when he heard the motorbike approach.
“It was travelling at high speed on the wrong side of the road and took the junction on the wrong side of the traffic island. It collided with railings on the opposite side of the junction,” he said.
The road in question veers slightly downhill and to the left, Det Gda Lynch said.
“I think he didn’t judge the road properly,” he said.
The Dublin Fire Brigade ambulance crew at Dolphin’s Barn heard the impact and arrived at scene shortly after. The man was pronounced dead at the scene.
A post mortem examination by Dr Muna Sabah found the man sustained a catastrophic head injury in the collision which lead to his death. He also sustained serious injuries to his body. A toxicology report found no drugs in his system but he had a blood alcohol level of 247 milligrams per cent.
Coroner Dr Myra Cullinane noted that the legal alcohol limit for driving is 50 milligrams per cent.
A forensic collision report found the man had been travelling in excess of 88km/ph in a 50km/ph zone when the crash happened. The bike slid 92 metres before coming to a halt after the impact. The jury returned a verdict of death by misadventure.
“The only thing to take from this in terms of comfort is that this was very quick, he didn’t suffer, but it’s very sad and it’s a very difficult time of the year to lose someone,” the coroner said.