A decade on, Cork family relive car crash horror in TV documentary

On the morning of Sunday, December 4 2016, a Cork family were on their way to a Christmas festival in Waterford, called Winterval.

There must have been great excitement and anticipation as Mary Bermingham and Gary Fenton, in their thirties from Mallow, and four children aged from 6-14 headed across the Waterford border.

However, the family did not make it to the festive event.

A few kilometres outside of Dungarvan, tragedy struck when their Citroen Picasso people carrier was hit by an oncoming vehicle.

Mary, originally from Churchfield, and Gary, originally from Cobh and working for the Naval Service, were both seriously injured.

In the aftermath, the couple and one of the children were airlifted to CUH for emergency surgery.

Tragically, the three occupants of the other vehicle, a Volkswagen Golf, fared worse, and were killed as their car burst into flames after the crash.

The devastating events of nine years ago are recalled in a gripping documentary, Impact – The Anatomy Of A Crash, on RTÉ1 on Monday at 9.35pm.

It revisits one of the most devastating road collisions in Irish history and lays bare the enduring physical, emotional, and psychological scars that it left in its wake.

The sheer force of the collision that day was catastrophic: twisted metal, crumpled frames, and bodies torn and burnt by impact.

First responders described it as one of the most harrowing scenes they had ever witnessed.

Nearly a decade later, the documentary revisits the wreckage, not just of vehicles but of lives, through an unflinching lens.

Combining raw testimony, forensic reconstruction, and the voices of those who survived, this film doesn’t just ask what happened; it shows what’s left behind: a single moment, a violent surge of kinetic energy, and a lifetime of consequences.

Produced by Tyrone Productions, Impact weaves together the recollections of survivors, emergency responders who get a voice as never before, and experts in road safety and crash physics to construct a detailed, human-centred anatomy of tragedy and resilience.

At a time when concerns for road safety are growing, with almost 100 deaths on Irish roads so far this year, the documentary provides a powerful and timely reminder of how quickly lives can be shattered, and why road safety must be a national priority in every corner of the land.