Three motorcyclists were among five men killed on the roads over the weekend. Two Polish motorcyclists in their 20s died in Co Kerry yesterday morning when their bikes collided with a BMW car on the N21 between Castlelisland, Co Kerry, and Abbeyfeale, Co Limerick, at about 6am.
The men, who were returning from an international Harley-Davidson rally in Killarney, were travelling behind a Polish-registered Opel Omega Estate driven by friends.
At a slight bend on the road to Abbeyfeale, a BMW came from the opposite direction, travelling towards Castleisland.
It collided slightly with the Opel and then crashed head-on with the two bikes, said Supt Michael O'Donovan, who is heading the investigation.
On impact, the motorbikes caught fire and were pushed up to 30 metres along the road. Emergency service personnel who attended the crash shortly after 6am described it as "one of the worst" they had witnessed. They said the two bikes had been fused into one by the fire.
The BMW came to a standstill in a field some 50 metres from the initial site of impact and was later removed for forensic examination. The road remained closed for almost six hours and traffic was diverted.
The driver of the dark blue Northern-registered BMW 2.5 litre car is from Kerry, gardaí confirmed yesterday. He was taken to Kerry General Hospital in Tralee, but is not seriously injured.
Two fire brigade units, one from Castleisland and one from Killarney, attended the scene along with ambulance personnel and several gardaí.
"It was a dreadful tragedy and most distressing for everybody who had to deal with it," Supt O'Donovan said.
The motorcyclists were returning from the Harley Owners Group European rally in Killarney, and it is understood they were on their way to catch a ferry.
Gardaí have appealed for witnesses who may have been travelling between 5.45am and 6.15am and met any of the vehicles involved in the crash. In particular, they wish to speak to the occupants of a white Opel Vectra which came to the scene soon after the incident occurred.
The bodies of the dead were taken to the morgue at Kerry General Hospital, while gardaí tried to contact their next of kin in Poland. Their friends remained at the scene yesterday and were said to be extremely shocked.
Nigel Villiers, managing director of the rally in Killarney, said "everyone is devastated" by the men's deaths. The rally, held in Ireland for the first time, was attended by more than 5,000 Harley-Davidson owners from 29 countries.
In Co Leitrim, meanwhile, a motorcyclist in his 60s died after his bike collided with a car at Woodbrook, Carrick-On-Shannon at about 12.10pm yesterday. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The woman driver of the car suffered minor injuries.
On Saturday, a man in his 60s was killed after a crash near Gort, Co Galway. Jeremiah Mulcahy (66), Parklands Drive, Commons Road, Cork, was pronounced dead on the roadside after his car collided with a van on the N18 Galway-Ennis road at 3pm. A woman passenger believed to be in her 70s was taken to University College Hospital in Galway, but was not seriously injured. The incident happened at the junction of the Tulla Road near Lough Cutra school, the scene of several serious crashes in the past.
The driver of the van is thought to be from Co Kerry and was travelling south towards Ennis when the crash happened. He escaped injury but was said to have been shocked.
One unit of the fire brigade from Gort attended the incident along with two ambulances from Galway City, and fire personnel had to use cutting equipment to remove the victim from his car. Gardaí at Gort station are seeking witnesses and can be contacted on 091-636400.
Earlier, a man believed to be in his 20s was killed in a single-vehicle crash at Strattonstown, Ballina, Co Westmeath, at 8.40am on Saturday. He died after the car he was driving crashed through a ditch and ended up in a field.