Father killed in crash was five times over limit

A MAN who died after driving with his son into the path of an articulated lorry was five times over the legal alcohol limit, an inquest has heard.

The court also heard that a friend of the deceased wanted to take his car keys off him before the accident.

Building contractor Francis ‘Frank’ Walsh, 61, was killed instantly in the collision on the N5 near Swinford in Co. Mayo on February 13, 2018.

His student son Mark was badly injured, and was found slumped beside him in the wreckage. He subsequently survived, but was unable to attend yesterday’s hearing.

Witnesses told the inquest how Mr Walsh appeared to pull out in front of the truck, despite the lorry driver blowing his horn repeatedly. PJ Cronin, a friend of Frank Walsh, said yesterday that he spotted the deceased on the Kiltimagh/Swinford road before the collision, and described his driving as ‘swervy’.

He said he saw Mr Walsh, of Treenlaur, Kiltimagh, Co. Mayo, at the back door of his house earlier and had advised him to go inside as ‘he seemed to be drowsy’.

Mr Cronin said he followed his friend’s car and, about a mile from Swinford, witnessed a switch of drivers, with Mark getting out of the driver’s side and his father taking over the wheel. ‘When they pulled off again I followed them and Frank’s driving was a bit swervy,’ he said.

‘I decided at this stage that if they pulled into Applegreen service station I would pull in after them and take the keys off them.’ However, Mr Cronin said the deceased continued to drive past Applegreen and up to the T-junction on the N5.

‘I saw brake lights and he stopped at the junction. I did not see an indicator,’ he recalled. ‘Frank’s car seemed to take off at pace. It was like he misjudged that a lorry coming from his right was so close to him and he accelerated quickly to get out of its path. He had turned to the right and the lorry hit his side of the car. Both vehicles ended up in the ditch on the opposite side of the road. I pulled in and ran across the road to find Frank and Mark slumped in the car. Other people arrived on the scene and tried to get the windscreen out.’

The truck was owned by Donovan Transport, and driven by Eugene Casey, of Cloonloo, Boyle, Co. Roscommon. Mr Casey said Frank Walsh’s UK-registered Cadillac drove straight out in front of him.

In his statement, read out to the inquest in Castlebar, he said: ‘The silver car kept coming out in front of me. I sounded the horn to warn him to stop. He kept coming so I looked to the opposite side of the road to make sure there was nothing coming the opposite way. It was clear so I tried to go out and around the silver car but ended up hitting it on the driver’s side, I think.’

He added that ‘if there was anything I could have done to avoid the collision, I would have done it’.

Witness Andrea Cully told the inquest the deceased appeared not to stop at the junction and kept going. The driver of the truck was ‘beeping his horn constantly’, she testified.

Michael Geraghty, of Castleroyan, Kiltimagh, also testified that he heard the lorry blowing its horn.

Dr Fadel Bennani, consultant pathologist, gave the cause of death as multiple fatal injuries including skull fracture with subarachnoid haemorrhage and multiple rib fracture sustained in a road traffic accident. Mayo Coroner Pat O’Connor noted the blood-alcohol level of the deceased was five times the legal limit. The jury returned a verdict of misadventure.

‘His driving was a bit swervy’