Five teenagers killed in horrific M9 wrong-way crash are named

The teens who died in a horrific M9 crash that left five dead and multiple injured can now be named.

Five teenage boys were killed after they drove a high-powered BMW the wrong way on the M9 and collided with a family travelling to Dublin Airport in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Sources say gardai will not be formally releasing the names of the five victims for several days, but we have learned all their identities.

They were:

• Jeremy O’Brien, 18, from Carlow

• Alex McCarthy, 17, from Carlow

• Joey Carthy, 15, from Athy, Kildare

• Jack Kennedy, 17, also from Athy

• Kamil Pustkowski, 17, from Limerick

Although the names have not been formally released, gardai have notified all the teens’ families. And a liaison officer has also been appointed to each family.

It is expected to be several days before the post-mortems are concluded and the teens’ bodies can be released to their families.

An RIP.ie death notice published on Monday for Joe Carthy read: "Deeply regretted by his loving parents William and Gemma, brothers John, Willie and Ned, sisters Margarita and Mary Doll, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends and the members of St Michael’s Boxing Club, Athy."

In a statement, St Michael’s Boxing Club said on Facebook: "All of us here at St Michael’s were deeply saddened to learn of the death of Joe Carthy.

"We want to offer our sincere condolences to Joe’s family and friends, and especially to his father Willie, a valued volunteer and member of the club. Our thoughts are also with those who were seriously injured in the collision, and with their families at this very difficult time."

The BMW is suspected of driving at more than 120km/h when it crashed into the Hyundai near Junction 3 of the M9 in Co Kildare at around 3am on Sunday.

The occupants of the Hyundai, three women and a young child, were from the same extended family from Carlow. They were all lucky to survive the crash but suffered serious injuries.

The boy, aged just seven, is being treated at Crumlin Children’s Hospital. The female driver and front seat passenger are critically ill in Tallaght University Hospital in south Dublin. And the woman who was in the back seat beside the boy is in a serious condition at St. Luke’s General Hospital in Kilkenny.

Gardai in Athy are continuing their investigation into the crash, but the M9 was fully reopened to traffic on Monday morning.

Earlier, the Garda Representative Association (GRA) said its members were “all in shock” after the “horrific incident”.

GRA vice-president John Joe O’Connell said the BMW had earlier failed to stop for Gardaí and that it was his understanding that an instruction was given not to engage with the vehicle as it travelled the wrong way down the M9.

Asked if this was standard procedure, he told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland: “It would be standard practice, and the command and control centre would be dictating what happens in a live environment – but the members in the cars have to make a split-second decision.”

Mr O’Connell said there were “numerous gangs” of boys and young men “trying to outdo each other” in social media videos depicting interactions with Gardaí, pursuits and wrong-way driving.

"Our members are not going to follow down that route – we’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t, that way," he said.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he was “shocked and saddened” at the tragedy, which he described as being the result of “an irresponsible and dangerous act”.

Mr Martin said such incidents are, in some cases, “being done for likes on social media”. He said: “This is the second appalling crash we’ve seen on our roads in a matter of days as a result of the reckless driving of a car on the wrong side of the motorway, endangering the lives of innocent road users.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact Athy Garda Station on 01 666 6000, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.