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‘In a split second, life changed for them’ – Infant boy killed in road accident named locally

Parents plunged into grief as ‘one-second’ road accident claims life of their baby boy

Pictured: Hunter Molloy

Gardaí at the scene of the fatal road traffic incident at a halting site at Quin Road, Ennis, Co Clare, in which a child died. Photo: Press 22

thumbnail: Pictured: Hunter Molloy
thumbnail: Gardaí at the scene of the fatal road traffic incident at a halting site at Quin Road, Ennis, Co Clare, in which a child died. Photo: Press 22
Maeve McTaggart

Tributes have been paid to an 18-month-old boy who has died following a tragic incident with a car in Ennis, Co Clare.

The infant died after the incident involving a car at a ­halting site in Ennis, Co Clare, early on Wednesday afternoon.

The child was rushed to ­University Hospital Limerick at about 12.30pm, but was later pronounced dead.

The little boy has been named locally as Hunter Molloy.

Parish priest Fr Tom Ryan, who married Hunter’s parents and has known his mother since her childhood, said the family and close knit local community are “devastated” and there is a great sense of upset and bewilderment in the aftermath of the tragic incident.

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“Yesterday afternoon, the sun was shining here in Clare and in a split second, life changed for them,” he said. “A life that will never be the same again with the death of their young child in an instant and in a tragic accident that happened.

"At the moment, they are just totally confused, upset, bewildered as any family would be and trying to come to terms with this is really difficult at this time.”

Speaking to RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Fr Ryan said the mother of the young boy is expecting another child “in the coming weeks” and the family is now dealing with “a real turmoil of emotions, between the joy of birth and the sadness of death”.

Gardaí at the scene of the fatal road traffic incident at a halting site at Quin Road, Ennis, Co Clare, in which a child died. Photo: Press 22

“It’s totally confusing for the family to have to deal with these emotions that have come on them so suddenly and so unexpectedly. All we can do as a community and indeed as families is to just support them, be with them, listen to them, journey with them and help them in their pain at this time.”

A prayer service for the family took place last night, where those in the local community gathered to pray for each other and “for the strength to get through these days, these hours that lie ahead, especially over the coming days with the funeral to be arranged and with the grief to be expressed”.

Gardaí were at the scene of the incident yesterday evening as they tried to piece together what had happened.

Their investigation will include forensic examinations of the scene and a car.

Gardaí said a family liaison officer had been appointed to support them.