Graiguecullen sisters issue recovery update after M9 crash

THE three sisters who were seriously injured in the M9 crash last month have shared a short update on their recovery through their GoFundMe page.

The page, set up by Ella's friend Brian, has raised over €822,000 for the family since the crash on Sunday 16 August.

Alma and Niamh Kinsella, aged in their 30s, their sister Ella Hendricken, aged in her 20s, and Alma’s son Yemi (7) were critically injured when a BMW car travelling in the wrong direction on the M9 carriageway crashed into their Hyundai Tucson car at Moone, Co Kildare.

The family were travelling to Dublin airport for an early morning flight to England to attend a family wedding when they were involved in a head-on collision in which the teenagers were killed.

The five teenage boys travelling in the BMW all died instantly in the collision. They were Alex McCarthy (16) and Jeremy O’Brien (18) both from Carlow, Joey Carthy (15) and Jack Kennedy (17) both from Athy and Kamil Pustkowski (17), who lived in Dublin and Limerick.

The three sisters are originally from the Bennekerry area and moved to Graiguecullen.

In their statement online, the girls said they are "continuing to take things one day at a time and are getting stronger as the days go by."

"We're incredibly grateful for all the kindness, messages and support that have been shown to us and our family," the message signed by the three girls read.

"The past few weeks have been incredibly difficult for all of us, but the support we've received from so many people has meant more than we could ever put into words.

"To every person who has donated, shared the fundraiser, sent a message or simply kept us and our family in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you.

"The generosity and kindness shown to us has been overwhelming and we are incredibly grateful.

"For now, we're continuing to focus on getting stronger and taking each day as it comes."