Five teenage boys were killed and four people in another car were seriously injured in a head-on collision on Ireland’s M9 motorway near Moone, County Kildare. Irish police said the car carrying the teenagers had been travelling in the wrong direction before the crash, which occurred at about 03:00 local time between junctions 3 and 4.
The injured occupants were three women and a seven-year-old boy. Two of the women were reported to be in critical condition, while the third woman and the child were in serious condition. The family, understood to be from the Carlow area, was believed to have been travelling to an airport for a holiday.
The teenagers were locally identified as Joe Carthy of Athy, Alex McCarthy of Carlow, Kamil Pustkowski of Limerick, Jeremy O’Brien and Jack Kennedy. Gardaí said no police pursuit was under way when the collision occurred. The Garda Representative Association said the teenagers had earlier failed to stop and were in a stolen car, while Ireland’s police ombudsman, Fiosrú, began its own investigation.
Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly described deliberate wrong-way motorway driving as dangerous and irresponsible. Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan said the government would provide police with the resources needed to respond and would consider creating a specific offence for intentionally driving against motorway traffic. The representative association called for stronger laws, sentencing and pursuit training; O’Callaghan said the commissioner planned to introduce such training during the year.
Officials also focused on online material that may glorify hazardous driving. Taoiseach Micheál Martin said some incidents appeared to be carried out for social-media attention. O’Callaghan urged platforms to enforce rules against content celebrating criminal conduct. TikTok said it was monitoring related posts and removing accounts and videos that violated its policies. Meta said it limits minors’ access to some dangerous-driving content.
Local clergy described communities as shocked and struggling to understand the deaths. Fr Seamus McEntee said residents were considering how easily another family could have encountered the wrong-way vehicle. Fr Tom Little, who had contacted families affected by the crash, said recovery would be long both for the injured and for those grieving. The child and family agency Tusla said it was supporting local families and communities and would assist the Garda investigation. The crash also prompted renewed concern after other recent wrong-way incidents on Irish motorways.
Garda officials were also balancing intervention against risks to other road users. The representative association said its members lacked pursuit training, while the commissioner’s planned programme was expected later in 2026. The crash investigation and Fiosrú review would separately examine police contact before the collision and the circumstances on the motorway.
