A truck driver was killed and three others seriously injured in a five-truck crash yesterday morning in Co Cork.
The incident happened when a truck loaded with zinc ore travelling downhill towards Cork went out of control and collided with four other trucks travelling in the opposite direction.
It happened at 6.40am yesterday near the Corbett Court restaurant. Supt Con Cadogan of Fermoy Garda station said the scene of the crash was the worst he had ever come across.
The impact of the collision was so violent that the cab of the dead driver's truck was fused to the trailer and had to be cut apart. It is believed the truck may have lost its grip because of a wet road surface after a long dry spell.
The driver of the zinc-transporting truck died at the scene of the crash, and three other lorry drivers were taken to Cork University Hospital where they are in a serious condition.
The driver who died was travelling from Galmoy Mines in Tipperary. He was a foreign national in his late 30s or early 40s.
The incident closed the main Dublin-Cork road four kilometres (2.5 miles) north of Fermoy for nearly 12 hours yesterday, causing long tail-backs in the area. The scene covered an area of 300m (985ft) and the road was closed off to traffic until about 9pm last night, causing major traffic gridlock in the north Cork area.
Two Garda forensic teams were brought in to investigate the scene, which was attended by three ambulances, several fire crews and more than 30 gardaí.
The trucks had to be individually lifted by cranes to be weighed so their speeds could be estimated.
"We were hoping to reopen the road earlier, but the process was delayed by the fact that the cab of one of the lorries had fused with the trailer and we had to get a lowloader from Carlow to tow it away," said Supt Cadogan.
Management of the Galmoy Mines company was helping gardaí in their investigations into the identify of the deceased. The name of the man was not being released last night until his family could be contacted.
A postmortem is to be carried out on his body at Cork University Hospital this morning.
All of the vehicles involved in the crash have been seized by gardaí and the haulage companies involved are assisting them in their inquiries.
Meanwhile, a 73-year-old farmer in Monaghan was killed when the tractor he was working on crushed him. Packie Treanor (known as Nicholas), Tydavnet, Co Monaghan, died on Wednesday night in the Louth County Hospital, Dundalk, following emergency surgery.
It is believed Mr Treanor was working on the tractor when it rolled down an incline. It ran him over as he tried to stop it.