Donegal crash: Four of five victims not wearing seatbelts

Four of the five young men involved in a fatal road crash in Co Donegal on Saturday are believed not to have been wearing seatbelts.

Two friends, Nathan Fullerton (17) and Nathan Farrell (18), died when the car they were in crashed through a wall and then into a tree.

The crash happened at 3.30am on Saturday as they enjoyed a final night out to say goodbye to a friend leaving to live in Scotland.

A Garda source said that only one of the five men was wearing a seatbelt and he was one of the three men to survive.

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The three survivors were taken to hospital but none of their injuries are life-threatening. However, one man has suspected spinal injuries.

The crash happened on a stretch of road between Redcastle and Quigley's Point where, in 2005, five local men died when they were struck by a drink-driver.

Loss of life

Buncrana parish priest Fr Francis Bradley described the loss of life on the Inishowen peninsula as "relentless" and said his heart went out to the men's families who were "dumbfounded" by their loss.

Local Sinn Féin Senator Padraig Mac Lochlainn knew the families of the two men who were killed.

He said “Inishowen has suffered more than most as a result of tragedies on our roads. We have buried far too many of our young people.”

Road Safety Authority spokesman Brian Farrell said young male adults are disproportionately represented among those killed in road traffic incidents.

“Young males account for 7 per cent of the population but one in five road fatalities,” he said.

He said one-third of drivers and motorists killed in road incidents were not wearing a seatbelt.