THE RELATIVES of a young family who were tragically killed in a road traffic incident in Galway found out about the crash on Facebook, it has been revealed.
Karzan Sabah, his wife Shahen Qasm and their eight-month-old daughter Lena died in the incident on the M6 at Poolboy in Ballinasloe on Thursday evening last, and another woman was also injured in the three-car collision.
The incident occurred after a man who is understood to have been suffering with severe mental health issues drove his car down the wrong side of the motorway for at least 2 kilometres as high speed.
Karzan and Shahen were Kurdish nationals who had been living in Ireland for several years, and their eight-month-old daughter Lena was born here.
Karzan Sabah, his wife Shahen Qasm and their daughter Lena (Image: Kurdish Irish Society / Facebook)Galway Bay FM reports that the tragedy occurred as the family were travelling back from viewing properties Co. Carlow, where Mr Sabah was due to take up a new job as a lecturer.
Now the co-founder of Kurdish-Irish group 'Kurdish Art Nergez Group Ireland', Hiwa Wahab, has revealed that Mr Sabah's brother read about the incident which killed his brother, sister-in-law and niece on the group's Facebook page before he knew they were dead.
It is believed that Mr Sabah's brother was on the group's Facebook page to ask for help in locating his brother and his family as they had not been in contact and his phone was switched off.
Speaking on RTÉ Morning Ireland, Mr Wahab said Mr Sabah's brother was "concerned about the news" that Kurdish nationals had been killed in a crash in Galway, and asked the Kurdish Art Nergez Group Ireland organisation to help find his brother.
"We took a few details from them, and we started to make phone calls to the Gardaí and to the hospital and our branch in Galway," Mr Wahab told the radio programme.
"Three hours later, unfortunately, we had received the bad news. That’s when we shared it with the family."
The Kurdish and Galway communities have been devastated by the crash which resulted in the deaths of a young family, and The Kurdish Irish Society paid tribute to Karzan, Shahen and baby Lena in a post on Facebook.
"Our deepest sympathy to the families and relatives of Mr Karzan Sabah, a former PhD student in agriculture at NUIG, his wife Shahen and child Lena.
"May their souls be returned to Allah and let them rest in peace. God rest their souls."
