The Roscommon coroner has issued a warning about drink-driving, cocaine use and the importance of wearing seatbelts after two people died in a crash in Ballaghaderreen.
An inquest heard the driver of the car was almost three times over the alcohol limit at the time of the collision.
Roscommon coroner’s court yesterday heard about the deaths of two people in a single-car crash over two years ago.
It happened on the R293 in Edmondstown, Ballaghaderreen, at around 3am on March 11, 2022.
35-year-old Liga Smoloka, of 70 Cormill Park, Ballymote, Co Sligo, was the driver of the car and there were two passengers – 27-year-old Daniel Dolphin, of Deroon, Ballymote, who died, and another man, who survived.
Karen Gormley, from Gormley’s Corner House in Ballymote, told the inquest the three were drinking in the pub earlier that night.
The coroner’s court was later told it would appear Liga failed to negotiate a dangerous bend near the Bishop’s Palace in Edmondstown and the car crashed into a tree.
Daniel, who was a backseat passenger in the car and was not wearing a seatbelt, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Liga, who was wearing a seatbelt, was later pronounced dead in Mayo University Hospital.
The inquest heard the male front-seat passenger was also wearing a seatbelt and was not seriously injured.
Toxicology results showed Liga had 137 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood in her system.
This compares to the drink-driving limit of 50.
Asked by coroner Brian O'Connor if a reading of 137 would impair a person's ability to drive, pathologist Aliaa Shalaby said: "Yes."
Daniel’s alcohol reading was 178 and he had cocaine in his system.
Both Daniel and Liga also had an antidepressant called Citalopram in their toxicology results.
Coroner O’Connor returned a verdict of misadventure in relation to Liga’s death.
He said members of the public need to be reminded that drinking and driving is a lethal combination – he added, if you plan to drive, it is best not to drink at all.
Turning to Daniel’s case, he returned a verdict of accidental death.
He said Daniel got into the car knowing the driver had consumed alcohol.
He said unfortunately Daniel was not wearing a seatbelt – despite the legal obligation – and said his life may have been saved if he was wearing one.
Mr O’Connor said cocaine and alcohol played a role in this tragic death.
He said, unfortunately, cocaine is rampant in every town and village throughout our country.
He said parents need to know the dangers their children are subjecting themselves to.
He asked members of the public to assist the gardai with their investigation into drug abuse, calling it a “cancer in our society”.
Speaking at the inquest on behalf of the Dolphin family, solicitor Caroline McLaughlin said this is a particularly tragic case, with the loss of multiple lives in a single collision.
She said the family’s loss is immeasurable and their hearts are broken.
She said Daniel had a heart of gold.
She said he was one of 155 people who died on Irish roads in 2022 and too many lives are being lost in this way.
The Dolphin family called for safety on Irish roads – saying they pray no other family will ever have to endure their loss.
