Twelve-year-old child driver has died in a road accident.
Gatekeepers News reports that a Limerick priest, Monsignor Daniel Neenan who gave the last Rites to the 12-year-old boy, Wiktor Chojecki who died in a head-on collision with a truck said everyone was deeply moved by the courage and dignity of the boy’s family at the scene of the horrific accident.
Wiktor who would have turned 13 years old in just a few weeks time was killed at the scene of the accident between a car and a truck outside Adare shortly at the wee hours on Friday.
He was a first-year student at Scoil Mhuire Agus Íde and lived with his family in Newcastlewest.
The boy who had taken the car earlier in the night while other family members were asleep was the driver and only occupant of a Nissan Qashqai which collided head-on with a truck on the N21 at Rineroe near Adare, Ireland.
Although the driver of the truck, a man in his 40s, was treated for shock at the scene, he was not injured and did not require hospital treatment.
According to Monsignor Daniel Neenan, the boy’s family set aside their grief to personally thank gardaí, Limerick Fire Brigade, and paramedics at the scene for doing everything they could for their son and for showing them such sensitivity.
Neenan said, “I got a call around 4 am to say that there was a fatal accident on the outskirts of Adare and could I attend. Of course, I went straight away and when I arrived, they warned me that the person was very young.
“I went and anointed him and said some prayers over him… he’s just a child.
“It was obviously terribly harrowing for everybody. The guards and emergency responders are accustomed to something like this, but they were all just in shock. There was such terrible sadness around the place.”
When Wiktor’s parents arrived, they were given some time alone with their son before Monsignor Neenan joined them for prayers.
“At the end, that young mother who had just lost her son, before she left, she went around and personally thanked people for their kindness. I was deeply, deeply touched by that.”
Monsignor Neenan admitted it was a difficult scene for everyone in the emergency services.
“To see a man and woman arrive and have to face the body of their dead 12-year-old son – it was harrowing.”
“We gave them some moments of privacy and then I went over, I spoke to them and we prayed – I invited them to pray in Polish as well. It was so harrowing.”
He added, “In my last parish in Limerick, there was such a strong local Polish community and they were so good in getting involved in supporting what was going on in the parish, and also so supportive of one another. And I have no doubt that the Polish community will come out and support each other now in this awful time for them all.”
Canon Frank Duhig later visited Wiktor’s heartbroken parents to try to console them on their terrible loss.
“The reaction of everyone in the community is one of total and absolute shock,” he said.
“We prayed for him (Wiktor) at all our Masses today and people are very, very shocked. I went up to see his family and they are understandably in total shock.
“His parents and his sister….everyone is numbed by the tragedy.”
The boy’s family had moved to the Newcastlewest area a number of years ago.
While the driver of the truck, a man in his 40s, was treated for shock at the scene, he was not injured and did not require hospital treatment.
The principal of the boy’s school, Seán Lane of Scoil Mhuire agus Íde said everyone was stunned by what had happened.
“It’s very shocking, we had to break the news to the students this morning. Our teachers had to be briefed and then they went on to break the news to the students. It was very shocking for students and the outpouring of emotion that came with it.
“We then went on to identify the students particularly affected by it and offer the support that was required.
“It’s a huge loss to us all and we want to send our condolences to the family and we offer them any support the school can provide in these difficult times”.
