Kerry rally in which driver died ‘should not have taken place’, inquest hears
An inquest is underway regarding the death of Eoin McCarthy, who died during the Killarney Forestry Rally in 2022 when his car overturned in a stream. The navigator, Daniel O'Brien, testified about his failed attempts to rescue McCarthy from the submerged vehicle.
Why it matters
The incident highlights safety concerns in motorsport and the legal scrutiny surrounding event management and emergency response protocols.
The family of a man who died when the car he was driving veered off a track at a rally and overturned in a flooded stream have thanked the vehicle’s navigator for his repeated attempts to save their loved one’s life.
An inquest at Cork Coroner’s Court heard that co-driver and navigator Daniel O’Brien made several bids to free Eoin McCarthy (22) from the car in the wake of the incident at the Killarney Forestry Rally on February 20th, 2022.
O’Brien told the inquest he had struggled to assist McCarthy as “the water was brown like oxtail soup ... you could not see your hand in front of your face”.
The incident occurred at Stage 4 of the rally as the car drove towards a narrow bridge that had no railings.
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