Woman found dead under car ‘had been visiting her friend’

A woman whose body was found trapped under a car in a driveway is believed to have been visiting a friend at the time.

The victim, named yesterday as Margaret O’Connor (54), was found under her car between two driveways in a housing estate in Castlebridge, Co Wexford.

The alarm was raised shortly after 11.30am on Tuesday when neighbours in the Mill Park estate noticed the car parked at an unusual angle.

A garda source said: “It seems to have just been a freak accident – the type of thing that you couldn’t do again if you tried. It’s very sad.”

Ms O’Connor, who comes from nearby Ballyhogue, was pronounced dead at the scene.

It is understood she may have lain undiscovered for a couple of hours as locals went about their business.

The estate was promptly sealed off and gardaí put up screens around the driveway as shocked local neighbours looked on.

Gardaí said they were treating the matter as “a tragic accident”.

Ms O’Connor’s body remained at the scene for several hours while a technical examination was carried out.

Her remains were subsequently taken to University Hospital Waterford where a full post-mortem examination was due to take place.

The incident sparked widespread shock in the community of Castlebridge.

The keys were found in the ignition of the car and gardaí are working on the assumption that the vehicle rolled between two driveways and somehow trapped the woman underneath.

Ms O’Connor was a former resident of the Mill Park estate and gardaí believe she was making a social call, dropping provisions to her friend, when tragedy struck.

“It is a strange incident,” a garda source said. “It’s hard to know just how the car came to roll between the two driveways.”

An investigation is continuing and gardaí are appealing to anyone who may have witnessed the incident between 11.30am and noon on Tuesday to contact them.”