14/08/2009

Car Crash Fireball Horror Probed

Two young men have died while trapped in a blazing car in Co Kerry.

The horrific incident occurred when the car in which they were travelling struck a pier before exploding on the Dunrine Road.

A gardaí investigation is now under way into the tragedy that claimed the lives of Peter Galwey, 21, and Tim Reidy, 19.

Both men were friends and from Castleisland, Co Kerry. The accident happened as they were returning home, on the main Killarney-Tralee road, at 12.20am on Thursday morning from an evening out.

Their Vauxhall Cavalier car apparently spun out of control at a sharp bend and struck a concrete pier.

The car then apparently skidded back out onto the road where it exploded in a fireball after its fuel tank ruptured and ignited.

Peter Galwey was a basketball player and apprentice electrician, while Tim Reidy worked as a machinery operator and played for a Kerry GAA Club.

Reports suggest frantic efforts to save the men were undertaken by a passing truck driver who attempted to extinguish the blaze, but failed. Killarney fire brigade had to put out the fire with the two young men still trapped inside the vehicle.

Gardaí said they were unsure who was driving the car and dental records were being checked to assist identification.

A police public vehicle inspection team and the emergency services worked throughout the night while the road was closed to all traffic with diversions in place.

The bodies remained at the scene overnight and were removed yesterday to Kerry General Hospital for full post mortem examinations.

(DW/BMcC)

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