Elderly siblings (70s) killed in tragic collision in Kilmacrennan

A brother and sister, both in their early 70s, were tragically killed in a road traffic collision in Kilmacrennan on Wednesday night.

PJ McGettigan and Una McGettigan lost their lives in the two-car collision which occurred at 11.50pm on the N56 road on the edge of the village of Kilmacrennan.

They were both natives of Gleneraugh on the Lough Salt Road out of Glen village and Mr McGettigan lived at Fawns, Termon.

The victims were pronounced dead at the scene a short time after the collision and their bodies were taken to the mortuary at Letterkenny University Hospital.

The coroner for Donegal, Dr Denis McCauley, was notified and a post mortem examination will be carried out on the bodies of the deceased.

The late Mr McGettigan, a father-of-three, was a retired psychiatric nurse who also worked for a time as a physiotherapist.

He was the President of the County Donegal Boxing Board in 1986 and also served as the Board's secretary. In 1987, he created a slice of history as he and PJ Hallinan became the first two people from the county to be elected onto the Ulster Boxing Council at an AGM in Coalisland.

Mr McGettigan, along with the late Michael Bonner ran a boxing club in Termon and later had involvement with the Carrigart Boxing Club.

“He was a genuine gentleman,” said Peter O'Donnell, the current President of the County Donegal Boxing Board. “He was a great boxing man and gave the sport great service as a coach, referee, judge and administrator.”

Ms McGettigan, a single woman who lived at Gleneraugh, formerly worked as a seamstress in Fruit of the Loom in Milford.

They are the seventh and eighth people to lose their lives on Donegal's roads so far in 2024. In the whole of 2023, there were ten deaths on the county's roads.

“The figures are alarmingly high,” Inspector Seamus McGonagle, the head of the Donegal Garda Traffic Corps, told Donegal Live.

“This was a tragic accident where two people lost their lives. We are appealing to anyone who was in the area around the time of the collision to get in touch with us.”

Inspector McGonagle appealed to road users to always err on the side of caution.

The driver of the other car, a woman in her 40s from west Donegal, was taken to Letterkenny University Hospital for treatment of serious, but not life-threatening injuries.

The road was closed overnight to facilitate an examination by Garda Forensic Collision Investigators and diversions were in place as the scene was examined.

The vehicles, a Ford Focus and a Dacia Duster, remained at the scene before being taken away on Thursday morning.

Gardaí are appealing for any witnesses to this collision to come forward.

A spokesperson said: “Any road users who may have camera footage (including dash-cam) and were travelling in the area at the time are asked to make this footage available to investigating Gardaí.

“Anyone with any information is asked to contact Milford Garda Station on 074 915 3060, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda Station.”