Driver thanks Good Samaritans who pulled family from crashed car

A Cork woman who was involved in a road accident in Offaly last Friday has lauded the heroic efforts of those who helped her and her three young children, after they became trapped in their car.

Catherine O’Donovan from Mayfield was involved in a collision on the N62 between Birr and Cloghan at around lunchtime.

Her car flipped and ended up in the ditch. She had the child lock on and was unable to get out, but people who arrived on the scene managed to free the four of them.

She is indebted to four people - a man and three women - who helped to rescue them from her Hyundai Accent car. She says that with the shock she never got the chance to express her gratitude and she would like to meet them to thank them for their efforts.

Thankfully, Catherine, her son (8) and two daughters (14 and 5), escaped with minor injuries.

Catherine, who has family in Cavan, was on her way back to Cork from Cavan at the time of the crash.

“I go to Cavan all the time and I always go that way,” she told the Offaly Independent.

Her memory of what happened is hazy. “All I could hear was someone saying to break the window. I was covered in blood but it was all from my hand. I think it was from the windscreen. We got the kids out first. We had to get out the front passenger window,” she said. “The man sat with me until the ambulance came. I never even asked him his name, but I would like to get in touch with him. I just want to say thanks to them. They probably think they did nothing but they did. I don’t know what would have happened if they didn’t come along and helped. They were so calm. When I saw that they were looking after the kids I relaxed,” she said.

The four were all taken to Tullamore Hospital, but were discharged a few hours later, with minor injuries and bruising. Thankfully they are all making good progress.