Two Irish men die in road crash in Australia

TWO IRISH nationals in their mid-20s died following a head-on collision in the southern Australian state of Victoria on Saturday afternoon.

The Department of Foreign Affairs yesterday confirmed the dead men were Adrian Freeman, of Tooreen, Ballyhaunis, Co Mayo, and Robert Twomey, of Ballahadigue, Listowel, Co Kerry. The men died at the scene.

Adrian Freeman was a member of Tooreen GAA club and played intercounty hurling for Mayo. He was due to return to Ireland in August.

A minute’s silence was observed in memory of the men at the Galway versus Wexford Leinster championship game in Nowlan Park on Saturday afternoon.

It is understood the men were returning home from work when the crash occurred at 2.40pm.

They were in a Toyota Camry which was struck head-on by a Volvo travelling towards Barwon Heads on the Barwon Heads Road near the city of Geelong, southwest of Melbourne.

The driver of the Volvo, a local woman in her 60s, was taken by helicopter to the Royal Melbourne Hospital. She is being treated for serious injuries.

Two other Irish nationals, also in their mid-20s, were briefly hospitalised. They were released after receiving treatment.

The Department of Foreign Affairs is providing consular assistance to the families of the dead men.

Four men died in separate crashes in Ireland over the weekend.

The first fatality happened following a two-vehicle collision at Coolavacoose on the main road between Carbury and Edenderry on the R402 at 6.45am on Saturday. The 40-year-old male driver of one of the vehicles was fatally injured.

The driver and passenger of the second vehicle were injured. It is understood their injuries were not serious. Gardaí at Leixlip, Co Kildare, are investigating.

Less than two hours later, two vehicles crashed at Barnagh, Newcastle West, Co Limerick, at about 8.30am.

The male driver of one of the vehicles, aged in his mid-20s, was killed, and the driver of the second car was injured.

The dead man was later named as Tim Lane of Listowel, Co Kerry. Mr Lane was previously a finalist in the Young Entrepreneur of the Year competition.

A 23-year-old man died when the car he was driving was involved in a single-vehicle crash in the Ballyedmond area near Gorey, Co Wexford, on Saturday night. The man, who was travelling alone, was pronounced dead at the scene.

In Cork, a 24-year-old Polish national was killed in a single- vehicle collision on the Bandon to Halfway Village road at Ballinhassig at 2.20am yesterday.

It is understood he ended up trapped under the vehicle after it overturned.A 34-year-old male passenger, also a Polish national, was injured and is in a serious condition in Cork University Hospital.

The dead man has yet to be named pending notification of his family members in Poland.

The latest deaths bring to 88 the number of people killed on the country’s roads in the year to date.