A SPANISH man arrested in connection with the deaths of two Irish tourists in a road traffic incident on the Costa Blanca early on Tuesday morning has been remanded in custody.
The man (35) appeared before a local magistrate in Orihuela yesterday afternoon and was formally charged with two counts of causing death by negligence.
Mary and John O'Connell, who were in their mid-40s, from Gorteen, Cahersiveen, had been holidaying near Alicante when they were hit by a car and killed.
They had recently celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary.
The couple, who were well-known in the south Kerry area, had been staying in the holiday apartment owned by a friend of theirs in the Cabo Roig (Orihuela) resort.
They had visited the resort previously and were walking home along the busy N332 road shortly after midnight on Monday when struck by the car. The couple were returning home after a concert.
Local civil guard sources said the driver was detained and tested positive for alcohol.
The N332 was declared Spains most dangerous road a few years ago and the stretch on which the accident occurred is a notorious blackspot.
The busy road passes through areas packed with late-opening tourist nightspots. Despite this, there are few pedestrian crossings and, at several spots, the roadside is marked with floral tributes to the victims of past incidents.
Mr and Mrs O'Connellhad phoned Cahersiveen about 20 minutes before they were killed. Both were carrying ID and were immediately identified.
The holiday was part of their anniversary celebrations.
The couple, who had no children, were involved in voluntary and social organisations in the town and had relatives in the Cahersiveen and Portmagee areas.
News filtered through to their home town from about 9.30am yesterday and they were remembered at the early Mass in the O'Connell Memorial Church.
Cahersiveen parish priest Canon Billy Crean held a prayer service with family at the home of Mary O'Connell (85), John O'Connell's mother.
"They are numbed with shock. People are devastated," Canon Crean said.
Mr O'Connell worked in the Siveen Day Care Community Centre, while his wife worked in Devlin's Centra in Church Street near the presbytery as a delivery person and also in the shop.
Canon Crean said he spoke to her daily as she went about her deliveries and supermarket business. Devlin's Centra owner Vincent Devlin said he and the staff were extremely upset.
He said Ms O'Connell was a kind-hearted woman, full of enthusiasm for life and extremely generous with people.
The O'Connells were both involved in the town's Special Olympics efforts, a local drama group and the annual Celtic music festival. Local councillor Paul O'Donoghue (FF) said the couple were "very likeable, very well-known and extremely popular".
The Department of Foreign Affairs yesterday said they were providing assistance through their honorary consul at Alicante and the Irish Embassy in Madrid.