TWO MEN have died while a woman and child were seriously injured following a road crash near Ennis, Co Clare, yesterday.
The male drivers of two cars died at the scene while a woman and 4-year-old child were injured.
The injured woman and child were taken to the Mid-Western Regional Hospital in Limerick for treatment. The head-on collision occurred at Bansha near Darragh about 6km from Ennis town on the main N68 Ennis to Kilrush road.
A silver Dublin registered Volvo car, with a 40-year-old occupant, and a silver Ford Mondeo believed to be carrying the 4-year-old and his grandparents, collided at about 3.35pm.
It is understood the man (61) and his family are from Co Limerick and were travelling home from Doonbeg in west Clare.
The driver of the second vehicle was travelling towards his home in Kilrush, although he is not believed to be originally from the area.
Three units of the fire service from Ennis, including a specialist emergency tender, were sent to the scene along with a fleet of ambulances from Ennis and Limerick city.
An advanced paramedic, specially trained in advanced life support, was also sent to the scene as gardaí began closing roads to ensure ease of access for emergency crews.
A paramedic and two nurses, who were travelling home after attending an inquest in Kilrush, were among the first to arrive at the scene.
They provided any medical assistance they could while several people raised the alarm by calling the 999 emergency number.
The vehicles crashed on a good stretch of road.
The road is two lanes wide and a hard shoulder runs on either side, of it. The road and weather conditions in the area at the time are said to have been good. The crash occurred on the brow of a hill.