What happened

The drive

In sequence, in plain language, from the records.

At 22:01 on 24 April 2025 — dark, in heavy rain — a 2021 Ford Fiesta approached Killardry Bridge. The approach is a blind right-hand bend at a three-point junction, immediately onto an 1800 humpback bridge. The carriageway is 4.8m wide; the bridge sits at a 90-degree skew to the road — the council's own 2014 inventory records it.

There was no advance warning signage of any kind. The posted limit was 60kph — reduced from 80kph just ten weeks earlier. The bend, on its 33-metre radius, cannot be safely driven above 46kph in the wet.

The Garda review of the camera footage found she was within the posted limit and did not swerve. The car mounted the parapet and entered the River Aherlow. The drop to the water is over 6 metres, with no vehicle restraint of any kind.

Source: TCC 2014 inventory (Approach Skew 2: 90.00 deg; carriageway 4.80m); DWA forensic findings (bend radius, speeds) — findings usable, report privileged and never published

The numbers behind each of these →

Last updated 2026-08-05. This is a living record — findings are added as dated entries and prior versions remain visible.