Counties Affected
Overview
Two people lost their lives on Irish roads between 10 and 13 November 2026, in a single collision in County Offaly. While every fatality is a tragedy in its own right, this period serves as a sober reminder that road deaths continue to touch communities across Ireland, often without warning.
Incident Summary
Wednesday, 11 November – Tullamore, County Offaly
A fatal two-vehicle collision on the Tullamore to Ballinagar road, close to a local GAA club, claimed the lives of two people on Wednesday morning. A woman in her 40s and a man in his 50s, each driving a van, were both pronounced dead at the scene. No further details of the circumstances have been released at this time.
The thoughts of everyone at roaddeaths.ie are with the families, friends, and wider community affected by this devastating loss. Incidents like this are a stark reminder of how quickly and irreversibly lives can change on our roads.
Year-to-Date Context
As of 13 November 2026, our tally — compiled from published news reports — stands at 154 road deaths across Ireland this year. At the same point in 2025, the official Road Safety Authority figure was 159.
This represents an approximate 3% reduction on last year’s figure. That is a cautiously encouraging sign, though it is important to note that our running total and the RSA’s official count use different methodologies, so direct comparison should be treated with care. No single statistic, however it trends, diminishes the human cost behind these numbers — 154 lives lost, each one with family and friends left behind.
Safety Advice
Head-on and cross-path collisions between larger vehicles such as vans remain among the most serious types of road incidents. The RSA continues to urge all drivers, and particularly those who drive as part of their work, to:
- Reduce speed on rural and local roads, where sight lines may be limited and surfaces less predictable, especially in November’s poor light and wet conditions.
- Allow extra time for journeys in autumn and winter, removing the pressure to rush.
- Stay fully focused — distraction, even briefly, can have catastrophic consequences on a narrow road.
- Ensure your vehicle is roadworthy, with particular attention to tyre condition, brakes, and lights as the darker months set in.
If you drive a van or commercial vehicle for work, your employer has a responsibility — and so do you — to ensure journey times are realistic and that fatigue is managed carefully.
Looking Ahead
As we move deeper into November, daylight hours shorten and road conditions become increasingly challenging. Mist, frost, wet leaves, and reduced visibility are features of the weeks ahead. This is the time of year when extra caution is not just advisable — it is essential.
We ask every driver to slow down, stay patient, and treat every journey, no matter how familiar the road, with full attention. The two people who died on the Tullamore to Ballinagar road on Wednesday were simply travelling — just as any of us might be. Their deaths matter, and how we all behave on the road in the days and weeks ahead matters too.
If you have information about a road incident not included in our figures, please contact us through the website.
Report card description: Two people died in a single van-on-van collision near Tullamore, County Offaly on 11 November, bringing our 2026 road death tally to 154 — approximately 3% below the RSA’s figure for the same point last year.