A Garda in his 20s was seriously injured when he was hit by a car near Cork city last night.
The young officer, named locally as Garda Brian Shanahan, was hurled 30 feet by the impact when he was hit by a car as he attended an accident scene on the outskirts of Cork city.
The driver of the car ran away but a man was arrested an hour later in the Mayfield area in connection with the incident.
It is understood that the car - a French-registered Opel Kadett - was involved in an earlier incident at a filling station on the Mallow Road before ploughing into the accident scene on the North Ring Road at around 1.47 a.m.
A Garda spokeswoman said: "The officer sustained a broken shoulder, pelvis and thigh bone and was taken to Cork University Hospital where he is being detained.
"A man was later arrested and taken to Mayfield Garda station in connection with an earlier incident. He was released without charge and a file is being sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions."
Meanwhile, gardaí gathered in Dublin early this morning to pay tribute to two colleagues who were killed by a stolen car last Sunday.
Garda Michael Padden (27) and 53-year-old Garda Anthony Tighe died when a stolen Mazda crashed into their patrol car as they attempted to stop other motorists driving into its path on the Stillorgan dual carriageway.
Officers from across Dublin gathered at the scene of the tragedy at 6.30 a.m., the time of last week's crash.
Additional reporting PA
