There are two stone markers on the old Dublin-Belfast road in Co Louth opposite the Monasterboice Inn, also known as Donegan’s. Though the stretch of road is a 60km/h zone, few motorists slow sufficiently to notice.
One marker marks the memory of Shane Whelan (19) who was killed 11 years ago as he crossed the road from the Monasterboice Inn to his grandmother’s home.
At the other side of a laneway less than 10m away is a stone memorial to his grandfather, Don McCullough, who was killed crossing the same stretch of road on May 4th, 1991. He died on his 51st birthday. The family tragedy does not end there.
Down the laneway between the two spots where those fatalities happened is the McCullough family home. In 1982 Séamus McCullough, then just a 17-month-old child, was killed when he walked out in front of a milkman’s van.
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“We are absolutely devastated with three tragedies in our family. Our lives will never be the same again,” said Shane’s mother, Bernie Whelan.
“We think of all the things that Shane and Daddy [Don] lost out in our families. They were such a big part of the family and of the local community.”
On October 27th, 2013, Shane Whelan attended his uncle’s stag party in the Monasterboise Inn. He decided to leave his bags in his grandmother’s house when he was hit by a car and killed.
Shane “loved life”, said his mother. He was minor player of the year in 2012 with his local club Naomh Mairtin and he worked part-time in the Monasterboise Inn. He was studying sports and recreation at the Drogheda Institute of Further Education. His whole life was ahead of him.
The stone marker to recall Shane was placed for the 10th anniversary of his death. He would be 30 now. The family will have an anniversary Mass for him and a gathering at his home on Sunday.
Losing her father, son and brother to road incidents has made Mrs Whelan especially mindful of life’s fragility and how bad decisions on the road leave families devastated.
The Whelan family later discovered the traffic lights on the stretch of road had been out of operation for three years before Shane was killed in 2013. In 2001 a couple, who were to travel to Australia the following day, were killed just yards from where he died.
Mrs Whelan is now campaigning for several measures that she believes will ensure there are no more deaths on the road.
Last year the flashing lights which signalled motorists were entering a 60km/h zone were knocked out in a collision and not replaced. On the other side of the road, there is a double set of traffic lights with a central island. When one set of lights is green motorists can speed through, but on the other side they are red at the same time.
It would be easy, she believes, for a pedestrian to think that the pedestrian crossing was free to cross at both ends and they could walk right into passing traffic.
Mrs Whelan said she contacted the Fianna Fáil general election candidate for Louth, Alison Comyn, out of exasperation with the current situation. “This has been going on a year and nothing is being done about it. It is another accident waiting to happen. I don’t want other families to go through what we have gone through.”
Ms Comyn said she has asked the council to undertake an urgent survey of the road and then implement what remedial action needs to be taken.
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