Northern Ireland

Young motorcyclist who died in Toomebridge crash named as Ciaran Hurl (26)

Ciaran Hurl.
Ciaran Hurl.

A 26-year-old motorcyclist who died after a crash in Toomebridge has been named as Ciaran Hurl.

Police confirmed the young man from the Moortown area was killed after colliding with a lorry on the Blackpark Road shortly after 6am on Thursday morning.

The road has now reopened and a full investigation into the circumstances is ongoing.

Officers have appealed to anyone with any relevant information or with dash-cam footage to call 101, quoting reference 201 for August 17.

A family notice said he was the dearly beloved son of Enda and Shauna as well as brother to Michelle , Aoibheann and Dara.

Funeral arrangements have yet to be confirmed.

As a former youth player Moortown St Malachy's GAC, a tribute on the club's page read: "A light in our community has gone out this morning, with news of the tragic death of Ciaran Hurl, a former youth player."

The club said the family's los was "immeasurable" and "as a club and community we need to wrap them in love and support over the days and months ahead."

All club activities have now been canceled as a mark of respect.

A post from Kinturk Cultural Centre added: "Our community this morning awakened to the sad news of a tragic accident, claiming the life of a lovely young hardworking man.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends at this extremely sad time."

Mr Hurl is now the 46th person to die on Northern Ireland roads this year, with the PSNI urging drivers to slow down and take extra care.


The latest fatality means there are 18 more recorded deaths than by the same time last year.

The PSNI’s head of road policing, Chief Inspector Graham Dodds, said the increase was “shocking”.

“Many more people have suffered serious and sometimes life-changing injuries. Every time you hear about a fatal or serious collision on the news, there is a family, a circle of friends, a community plunged into mourning,” he said.

“These figures show that we as a society we are still not taking road safety seriously enough. The responsibility for making our roads a safer place remains one that we all share.”

He said excessive speed for the conditions, drink or drug driving were consistently the main causes of the most serious crashes that kill or seriously injure people.

“It is shocking that on just one day alone (Saturday, August 12) one driver was arrested after being stopped travelling at 104 mph - he was also found to be under the influence of alcohol.

“A restricted (R) driver was prosecuted for driving at 96mph when the maximum speed they should have been travelling at was 45mph.”

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Chief Inspector Dodds said that speeding could not be viewed as a “low-level crime,” but a serious threat to other road users.

“Speeding causes crashes. In a crash the most vulnerable thing on the road is you,” he said.

“Removing excess speed from the road safety equation should be the easiest thing that every road user can do.

“If we all stop speeding, more people live. If we all stop speeding, fewer people have to contend with life-changing injuries.”

He added that reducing deaths and serious injury on the roads remained a policing priority, and the “small minority” responsible would continue to be targeted

“We all share the responsibility to prevent deaths and serious injuries on our roads.”