THE death of a 34-year-old man Belfast man following a road accident in Co Donegal brings to six the number of people killed on the county’s roads in just over a week.
The man, named locally as Ciaran Parker from the Whiterock area, died at Letterkenny University Hospital early yesterday.
He was one of two people injured in a two-vehicle collision on the main Letterkenny to Lifford road at about 1pm on Thursday.
A Garda spokesman said the collision, involving a car and a lorry, occurred at Tullyrap near Raphoe.
A teenage girl who was also in the car was taken to hospital while the lorry driver escaped uninjured.
Sinn Féin councillor Steven Corr said of Mr Parker: “It is very sad. He was a well-known fella in the community, although he hasn’t lived here for a while. The thoughts of the area are with his family.”
The latest incident follows the deaths of five young people in two separate crashes in Donegal last week.
Dermot-Murphy Boyle (19) and Barney McGinley (28) died when their car was involved in a collision with a van while they were driving in the wrong direction along the Letterkenny dual carriageway on July 26.
The following day, three friends – Stephen McCafferty (19), Teresa Robinson (20) and Kaylem Ó Murachaidh (Murphy) (18) – died in a two-car collision on a back road between Letterkenny and Drumkeen.
Donegal councillor Gerry McMonagle said the scene of the latest crash was a known accident blackspot.
He extended his sympathies to the family of the deceased.
“Donegal County Council has been campaigning for a new road on this route for years,” Mr McMonagle said.
“The money must be provided for this now. It’s one of the busiest routes in the county.”