The families of an Irish couple left fighting for their lives after a car crash killed their son and unborn child are maintaining a vigil at their hospital bedsides.
The young victim, named locally as two-year-old Oisin Twomey, died and his father Con — “Connie” — and mother Elber were critically injured while holidaying in the UK.
The family, from Meelin, Kanturk, Co Cork, were expecting a second child which also died in the high-speed crash in Torquay, Devon, on Friday afternoon.
A Polish man in his 20s, who was driving the second car, was arrested at the scene but later died.
Mr and Mrs Twomey both come from tight-knit families in north Cork and their parents and siblings flew to the UK on Friday when the news broke.
It is understood they had only recently built their dream home, a bungalow outside the village of Meelin.
Prayers will be said for the family at Mass services in their parishes this morning.
The road was closed for more than 10 hours while the vehicles were recovered and forensic examinations took place.
Twenty-five emergency service vehicles attended the incident, along with three air ambulances, including one from Dorset, which helped to take all four occupants of the cars to hospital.
Mr Twomey, 39, was taken by ambulance to Derriford Hospital, while Mrs Twomey and Oisin were taken to Torbay Hospital by air ambulance.
Both parents have undergone surgery.
Police chiefs said it appeared a black Vectra driven by the Polish man went down a hill and swerved into the path of the family’s oncoming car.
A police major crime investigation team and serious collision investigation unit are looking into the circumstances of the crash.
The crash was witnessed by a police officer who was immediately on the scene.
Because the driver of a police car witnessed the crash, the force has referred the matter to the Independent Police Complaints Commission as a matter of course.
However the officer’s police car had not been pursuing the vehicles.