Man killed lying on road was five times over legal driving limit

A woman tried to alert an oncoming car to a person lying in darkness on a roadway moments before a fatal collision, an inquest heard today.

Michael Hickey (45) was pronounced dead at the scene of the collision just outside Tyrrellspass in Co Westmeath in the early hours of October 5th last year.

Mr Hickey of Gneevebawn Hill, Co Westmeath suffered multiple injuries and was killed instantly, his inquest in Mullingar heard. He was five times over the legal limit for driving.

Coroner Dr Wilfred Hoover said that there was no way of knowing why Mr Hickey had laid down on the roadway and there was no evidence he had been hit by another vehicle.

Bar worker Sinead Kinsella said she had been driving home to Rochfortbridge and approaching Tyrellspass shortly after 1am when she saw “something big” on the opposite side of the road.

When she realised it was possibly a person, she pulled over and stopped to get her mobile phone and alert gardai. She saw a car coming towards her and flashed the driver with her lights as a warning. She also tried to get out of her car, but the door was locked.

“He flashed back once…I knew he wouldn’t have a chance to stop,” Ms Kinsella said.

As soon as the car passed by, she heard a bump. She rang 999 immediately and spoke to the gardaí in Mullingar. Driver Jamie Donegan said he was travelling at about 100km/ph—the speed limit—when he saw the lights flash ahead of him. As soon as he passed by the car which had flashed him, he heard a bang.

Garda witnesses confirmed Mr Donegan had not been exceeding the speed limit. The postmortem examination showed that Mr Hickey was five times over the legal blood alcohol limit for driving.

“The level of alcohol was particularly high. Whether it made him unaware of where he was, lying down on the road, nobody knows. There is no evidence that any other vehicle went over him,” Dr Hoover said.

The jury returned an open verdict.