French girl still critical

Nine-year-old French girl remains critical

Neill O’Neill

A nine-year-old French girl who was injured when the car in which she was a back seat passenger collided with a Landrover jeep near Louisburgh at 5pm last Tuesday, remains in a critical condition in Temple Street Children’s Hospital in Dublin.
Chiara Kahn suffered serious injuries in the crash which claimed the life of her 12-year-old sister Pauline – who died in Mayo General Hospital (MGH), shortly after the accident. Their mother Antoinella was due to be released over the weekend, while the girl’s father Laurent was allowed to leave hospital earlier in the week. There were two occupants in the jeep and one of them was also taken to hospital.
The Kahn family, who are from Paris, had been holidaying in the Killadoon area outside Louisburgh, and were travelling back there from the Westport direction when their rented Toyota Avensis collided with the jeep on the stretch of the main R335 road that lies between the two entrances to Old Head beach.
The two children were back seat passengers in the car and were removed to MGH while gardaí closed the road. The French Embassy was contacted and sent a representative to Castlebar to meet the family on Wednesday. It is understood that the parents are currently in Dublin with their daughter and that an inquest will be held in Castlebar in the coming days so  that Pauline’s remains can be repatriated.
Gardaí are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the accident.