A YOUNG girl has died and her brother hospitalised with serious injuries after they were hit by a car while cycling near their home this morning.

The children were cycling their bicycles near the family home in the Creggane area of Galway when the tragedy happened.

The siblings were on the road close to the halting site where they live when a car lost control, struck a tree and collided into the children shortly before noon yesterday.

The young girl (9) was rushed to Portiuncula Hospital but despite the best efforts of paramedics she was pronounced dead a short time later. Her older brother (11) was also hospitalised in  a serious condition but his injuries were described as non-life threatening.

The small community in Creggane, around 4km from Ballinasloe, is now in mourning following the Bank Holiday road tragedy.

An investigation is underway by officers at Ballinasloe garda station, and they are appealing for any witnesses to come forward.

At this stage gardai believe that the BMW vehicle being driven along the Ballinasloe to Ahascragh road lost control and struck a tree.

The vehicle then collided into the children, before being flipped on its side from the impact of the collision.

A large number of family members gathered at Portiuncula Hospital following the tragedy to console one another. 

No arrests have been made as part of the garda investigation and inquiries are ongoing.

Local Fine Gael councillor Michael Finnerty said that the local community will rally around the family in the coming days to support them.

“For this to happen on any day is bad enough but on Easter Sunday for this family is tragic and we are thinking of them.

“I’m sure the family, they have a large family, and the community will rally around them over the coming days,” Mr Finnerty said.

The Ballinasloe to Ahascragh Road remained sealed-off this evening by gardai as they determine to establish the exact cause of the road traffic collision.

Members of the garda technical bureau carried out an examination of the scene while forensic collision investigators also assessed the crash site.

The family are understood to have settled at a halting site in Creggane in recent years.

One local man who lived near the scene of the tragedy said he only heard about the incident after arriving home in the afternoon.

“I was actually out when it happened, and was driving up the road on the way home when I was told it closed off.

“We thought it was fairly serious now because the guards were here for a long time, and we now know what’s happened. It’s desperate.

“You wouldn’t see the children out on their bikes normally. There was a lot of them up at the hospital earlier on, they are a large family so there was a lot of them up there,” he said.

The BMW car was visible on its side with a ‘caution children’ sign close to the scene of the tragedy.

In a statement this evening, gardai said both children were cycling their bikes when they were struck at approximately 11:55am.

“Both children were taken to Portiuncula Hospital where the nine-year-old girl was pronounced dead.

“The road is currently closed for a forensic examination. Gardai are appealing for anyone with information in relation to this incident to contact Ballinasloe Garda station on 0909 631890.”

The fatal road tragedy brings to 52 the number of people killed on Irish roads so far this year, compared to 46 in the same period last year.

Source: Read Full Article