Teen Sean undergoes 11-hours of surgery after hit-and-run
By Mary Dennehy
GARDAI have made a direct appeal to the driver of the car involved in a hit-and-run incident in Tallaght last Sunday, which saw teenage cyclist Sean O’ Reilly undergo 11-hours of surgery after suffering multiple fractures and broken bones.
Sean (14) was cycling home to Drumcairn at around 8.50pm on Sunday, February 4, when he was struck by a black saloon car on the Cheeverstown Road – with the driver of the vehicle leaving the scene.
The young cyclist was brought to the ICU unit in Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital in Crumlin, where he is currently being treated for serious injuries – which include a broken skull, fractured bones in his face, fractured neck, a broken leg, broken elbow, a large laceration on his forehead and painful bruising around the body.
On Monday, Sean, who is a Junior Cert student at Mount Seskin College, underwent nine hours of surgery and on Wednesday was back in the operating theatre for a further two hours.
Speaking with The Echo on Wednesday, Sean’s dad John said: “Sean is awake and talking but he is very frustrated and in a lot of pain, mentally this is very hard on him.
“He can’t move and yesterday had a brace put on his leg that he will have to wear for around three months.”
John added: “What happened to Sean is horrific, seeing him lying on the ground like that is something I’ll never get out of my head.
“The car that hit Sean never stopped, it just kept going.
“I can’t understand not stopping. Even if the person was in shock, it’s been three days now and nothing… they still haven’t come forward.”
While thanking the community of Tallaght for its support in recent days, John has re-issued the family’s appeal – and encouraged anybody with information to come forward.
Gardai have also re-issued their appeal for information, with Tallaght Superintendent Ian Lackey making a direct appeal to the driver of the car.
“We are doing a direct appeal to the driver or anybody who was in the car to come forward,” Supt Lackey said.
“We are also re-issuing our appeal for information and encouraging anyone who might have seen anything to contact us.
“There might be people out there with dashcam footage they may not even realise they have.”
When asked about investigations to date, Supt Lackey told The Echo: “We carried out check points on the [Cheeverstown Road] in the days after the incident in the hope of catching traffic that may have been in the area on the Sunday evening.
“A forensic examination was also carried out at the scene and items have been recovered that may help to identify the offending vehicle.
“These items need to be forensically examined.
“We are also harvesting CCTV.”
Garda confirmed that the car involved in the incident was a dark coloured saloon, possibly a black Saab 93.
Anybody with information is encouraged to contact Tallaght Garda Station on 6666000 or the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111.
