N68 reopens after earlier collision involving truck

Updates:

2.20pm – The incident on the N68 at Caherea has been cleared and the route fully reopened.

12.05pm – The truck and trailer have now been removed from the ditch.

The road remains closed at present.

11.30am – The N68 is now fully closed at Caherea while efforts to remove the crashed truck get underway.

This could take up to two hours and motorists are advised to avoid the area in the meantime. Traffic diversions have been put in place.

10.40am – Two recovery vehicles have arrived at this scene and an assessment is now being undertaken before any effort to remove the truck begins.

The road is likely to be closed while this operation is ongoing.

The driver of an articulated lorry escaped injury after his vehicle left a busy road in Co Clare early this morning.

The incident occurred at around 7.15am on the main Ennis to Kilrush N68 road at Caherea close to the local national school. The delivery truck was driving towards Ennis when the collision occurred. It’s understood that the driver had earlier completed a delivery in Kilrush in West Clare.

The truck mounted and travelled along the soft margin for a short distance before jack-knifing into small stream. The driver managed to escape from the vehicle through the passenger door.

Units of Clare County Fire and Rescue Service from Ennis station responded to the incident along with National Ambulance Service paramedics and Gardaí. The driver was assessed at the scene by paramedics but was found to have been shaken but uninjured.

The road was fully closed for a time to ensure the safety of emergency services as they dealt with the incident. Fire crews later implemented an emergency traffic management plan which saw one lane reopened. The Ennis-bound lane remains closed. (10.15am)

Clare County Council staff also attended the scene with a digger to help clear the road of a large amount of debris.

It’s expected that heavy duty cranes will have to be used to remove the truck from the scene. The N68 is likely to be closed for a time again while that operation takes place.