Gardaí are “crying out to be trained” in pursuit driving, the Garda Representative Association has said.
Yesterday at 3 in the morning, a head-on collision occurred on the M9 in County Kildare after a driver decided to drive the wrong way up the motorway.
All five teenage boys in the car died, while the three women and child in the car they crashed into remain in hospital with serious injuries.
Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly has speculated that the teenagers might have been driving dangerously as part of a trend for “social media likes”.
On The Claire Byrne Show, Garda Representative Association spokesperson Mark Ferris described the crash as a “traumatic” incident for all those involved.
“Social media companies seem to be facilitating this,” he said.
“They must be held to account in some respect on this - once they become aware of criminal offences, creating a threat to life.”
Mr Ferris continued that the GRA has been calling for a course in pursuit driving for years and that he believes Ireland is “behind the curve”.
“In many other jurisdictions, response, pursuit, driving is treated as a basic element of frontline policing and it has clearly structured courses,” he said.
“You mentioned there, we had another thousand guards there chasing one vehicle; if I am not trained or accredited tactically in how to stop a car, a motorbike, an e-scooter, a scrambler, how am I supposed to do it?
“And this is the training that the Garda Representative Association is asking [for].”
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Mr Ferris added that Gardaí are “crying out to be trained” in how to better tackle those who drive dangerously.
“Cars need properly designed and accredited pursuit training, suitable equipment, a clear legal framework and protection when acting reasonable and in good faith,” he added.
“The courts must also treat delivered refusal to stop, unauthorised taking of cars and wrong way driving as a direct threat to life that they are.
“The road authorities must look at wrong way detection and real time alerts.
“They can utilise cameras, sensors, systems where safety is appropriate.”
Gardaí have asked any witnesses to contact Athy Garda Station and are especially keen to talk to anyone with dashcam footage.
Main image: The crash on the M9. Picture by: Eamon Farrell/©RollingNews.ie
