Wrong-way crash survivor 'can't believe it happened again' after deadly M9 joyride

A wrong-way motorway crash that killed five teenagers and seriously injured three women has reignited painful memories for Róisín Stakelum, a survivor of a similar incident three years earlier. The collision occurred on the M9 near Co Kildare on Sunday, when a BMW driven the wrong way collided with another vehicle carrying three sisters and a child heading to Dublin Airport for a wedding abroad. Five teenagers, Jeremy O’Brien, 18, Alex McCarthy, 17, Joey Carthy, 15, Jack Kennedy, 17, and Kamil Pustkowski, 17, were pronounced dead at the scene. The three sisters, Ella Hendricken, Niamh Kinsella, and Alma Kinsella, are receiving treatment for serious injuries in hospital. Stakelum, who was severely injured in a similar crash on the M8 in July 2023, described the latest tragedy as deeply unsettling. Speaking to RTÉ’s Brendan O’Connor radio programme, she expressed disbelief that such an accident could occur again. “I’m so upset,” she said. “It’s really, really affected me. I can’t stop thinking about the girls and the little boy in the car that was crashed into, and what they must be going through.” The 2023 incident saw Stakelum traveling to Dublin Airport for a planned trip to Australia when her car was struck by a group of teenagers driving the wrong way on the M8 shortly before midnight. She recalled the moment vividly, describing the sudden impact, the blinding lights, and the terror that followed. “I was probably drifting in and out of consciousness,” she said. “I remember the headlights, I remember the big bang, and I remember being in the car, absolutely terrified afterwards.” Stakelum suffered a significant head injury and struggled to make sense of her surroundings immediately after the crash. “I didn’t know where I was,” she said. “I had forgotten where I was going. It was just absolutely terrifying.” The psychological effects of the trauma lingered long after her recovery. “That fear has lived in me since, it hasn’t really gone away,” she admitted. “It has improved somewhat, but I am still absolutely terrified of everything.” Despite her efforts to resume normalcy, Stakelum faces ongoing challenges. She has returned to work part-time, working two days per week, but acknowledges the difficulty. “It’s a struggle,” she said. “I still have a lot of physical consequences and psychological consequences that affect my ability to work, and it has affected my trajectory in work.” Reflecting on whether she could reclaim her pre-crash life, Stakelum said, “No, I don’t. I think my life is always going to be different.” She emphasized the lasting impact of the crash, stating, “I’m always going to live with the scars, physical and psychological, from what happened to me that night. I’ll never be the same again.” Stakelum criticized the lack of preventive measures against wrong-way driving, noting that other European countries have implemented alert systems for such incidents. “It has to stop, it’s absolutely ridiculous,” she said. “People that survive crashes like that, they don’t necessarily get their own lives back.” Her response to the driver who caused her crash was complex. “Mixed emotions,” she said. “I have a lot of empathy for him. I have an awful lot of anger as well.” While acknowledging the difficulties the driver faced, she insisted, “It wasn’t an excuse.” As the investigation into the recent M9 crash continues, authorities are examining the circumstances surrounding the wrong-way driver and the potential factors that led to the tragic collision. Meanwhile, survivors like Stakelum continue to advocate for safer road practices and stronger preventive measures to avoid future tragedies.