Gardaí have described as a "tragic accident" an incident in which a young Dublin woman knocked down and killed her boyfriend while driving his car in the west Clare resort of Kilkee yesterday.
It is understood Stephen O'Reilly (24), Bawnlea Green, Tallaght, Dublin, may have been trying to flag down his girlfriend, Denise O'Reilly (18), Whitebrook Park, Tallaght, when she knocked him over at O'Connell Street, Kilkee, at 1.50am.
Garda Insp Tom Kennedy said both sets of parents "are known to each other in Tallaght and are absolutely devastated" by what had been a "tragic accident".
It is believed the couple were in Kilkee at the weekend to visit a friend who had relocated from Tallaght to west Clare with her family through the Rural Resettlement Ireland scheme.
The two were staying in a holiday home. It is understood that Ms O'Reilly was driving up O'Connell Street accompanied by a female friend in the direction of Kilrush when Mr O'Reilly stepped out on to the road near the holiday home and was struck by the car.
Mr O'Reilly died from his injuries at the scene. A postmortem was due to be carried out at University College Hospital Galway.
Insp Kennedy said that the scene of the accident and the car were yesterday being forensically examined by Garda technical teams.
Mr O'Reilly was the eldest of four children and a carpenter by trade.
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