Council considers closing off junction after fatalities
A busy junction where an American couple died in an accident last September and where another US couple were injured in a smash in April could be closed permanently, Cork County Council has said.
The Waterloo junction, on the main N20 Cork- Limerick road, has been closed for some time for continuing works.
The local authority has now said it will remain closed until those works are completed.
“Following some serious including fatal incidents, the council is giving consideration to proposing the closing of the junction permanently,” said a council spokesperson. “This is a statutory process, involving public consultation, and further details will be made available in due course.”
Last September, James Baker, 62, from Indiana, and Peggy Sue Adams, 59, from Ohio, were killed when their southbound hire-car was in collision with a truck as they turned right at the Waterloo junction. It is believed they were following sat-nav directions to Blarney.
In April last, an American couple were injured in a three-vehicle crash when, again, it is believed they were following sat-nav directions to Blarney. Judy Dinehart suffered minor injuries, but her partner Daniel Pilarski suffered serious injuries and had to spend some time recovering in hospital.
At the time, Gerry Myers, third officer with Cork City Fire Brigade, said: “I would hope that the authorities would look at signage or at the layout at the Waterloo junction, given that the safer exit to Blarney is just two miles further south.”
