Mother of young man killed by drunk driver: 'I wish I could feel numb again'
The mother of a 24-year-old man who was killed in a car crash in Ocober 2009 has said it feels to her as if it only happened yesterday.
Christina Donnelly's son Brendan had been travelling from Waterford city to Cork airport with friends when their car was hit by a drunk driver.
Brendan and his friend Lee Salkeld, 26, were killed.
Today marks World Remembrance Day for Road Traffic Victims. Special memorial masses and ceremonies are taking place across the globe.
Almost 24,000 people have been killed on Irish Roads since records began in 1959, with 160 deaths so far this year.
Christina said that although five years had passed since Brendan's death, her feelings about it remain the same.
"It's as raw as though it happened yesterday," she said. "The first year or two, I was absolutely numb. Sometimes I truly wish I could feel that numb (again) and then I wouldn’t have to 'come to terms' with it.
"I have never come to terms with the fact that Brendan will never come home. I have found it desperately, desperately hard."
Christna began a campaign for a new law where drivers who are involved in a fatal accident and fail a breath test would have their licences automatically suspended until their court appearance.
The Brendan's Law facebook page has had more than 6,500 likes.
