Cookstown horror crash - Every parent's nightmare is to hear that knock on the door

The reconstruction, which took place on Wednesday, 11 May 2016 at St Patrick’s GFC grounds in the Rock, was a very hard-hitting and realistic portrayal in real time of what happens immediately after a collision.

From the arrival of the first police car, to the ambulance personnel treating the casualty, fire service cutting the roof off the vehicle to release the trapped and fatally injured passenger, and the final removal of the deceased from the scene by a local undertaker.

Sergeant JP McCartan said, “One of the hardest parts of the job for Emergency Services personnel is breaking the news of the death or injury of a loved one to relatives and it is especially heart breaking when that news is of a young person whose whole life lay ahead of them.

“Every parent’s nightmare is to hear that knock on the door and be told that their child has been involved in a road traffic collision.

“Shocking though it was, this reconstruction aims to help our young people understand the life changing consequences that a road traffic collision can have for them, their friends and their families.”

PCSP Chair, Councillor Phelim Gildernew, said: “We want to bring the road safety message to young people who are at the highest risk of being killed or seriously injured on the road. We believe that showing realistically just what happens in a road traffic collision will have a lasting impact on the students who attend. They will realise that they are not indestructible and must respect the roads and other users.”

He continued: “We are very grateful to all the participants who made the reconstruction so realistic.”