A 12-year-old boy has died after the car he was driving collided with a lorry in Co Limerick in the early hours of Friday, February 11.

Shortly before 2 am on Friday, Gardaí and Emergency Services were alerted following a collision between a car and a lorry on the N21 at Rineroe near Adare, gardaí said in a statement on Friday.

The driver of the car, a male juvenile, was fatally injured. He was the sole occupant of the car. His body has since been removed to the morgue at University Hospital Limerick. The coroner has been notified.

The driver of the lorry, a man in his 40s, did not require hospital treatment.

The scene was preserved for examination by Garda Forensic Collision Investigators. Diversions are currently in place on the N21, with city-bound traffic being diverted from Adare via Croom.

Gardaí are appealing for any witnesses to this collision to come forward. Any road users who may have camera footage (including dash-cam) and were traveling on the N21 near Adare area at the time of the collision are asked to make this footage available to Gardaí.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Newcastlewest Garda Station 069 20650, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda Station.

Patrick O'Donovan, a Fine Gael TD from Limerick, said in a tweet that the local community is "shocked and saddened" by the news. 

"The community here across #Limerick are shocked and saddened with the terrible news this morning of the road traffic collision that has claimed the life of a young person near #Adare. The thoughts of all of us are with their family and with the driver of the other vehicle," O'Donovan said on Twitter. 

The community here across #Limerick are shocked and saddened with the terrible news this morning of the road traffic collision that has claimed the life of a young person near #Adare. The thoughts of all of us are with their family and with the driver of the other vehicle.

— Patrick O'Donovan (@podonovan) February 11, 2022