A14-year-old girl and her mother died in a car crash in Co Mayo last night.
Sandra Herbert (40) and her daughter Rachel, who was a front seat passenger, died when their car overturned and ended up largely submerged in a stream at at Rathbaun, Cloghans, outside Ballina at about 9pm. No other vehicle was involved.
Two 14-year-olds and a 13-year-old girl who were in the back seat escaped and raised the alarm. They were taken to hospital and are being treated for injuries which are not believed to be life threatening.
Local sources said it is believed the four teenage friends may have been going to a disco when the crash occurred.
The mother and daughter, who were from Knockmore, were pronounced dead at the scene.
The area where the car left the road has been sealed off for forensic examination.
Knockmore parish priest Fr Michael Flynn said the whole community was in a state of shock. “Everybody knew the family,” he told RTÉ. “It’s tragic at any time of the year, but at Christmas, it highlights it even more."
Fr Flynn described Mrs Herbert as “a good mother, a good wife”.
Gardaí have appealed for anyone with information to contact them.
It has not been determined if weather conditions were a factor in the accident, but large parts of Ireland were hit by overnight frost.
Five people have died on the State's roads since yesterday morning. A total of 172 have been killed so far this year.
Three men died yesterday in separate incidents in counties Offaly, Donegal and Waterford.
Additional reporting: PA