Gardaí are appealing for witnesses after three people died in Mayo yesterday afternoon. 

A woman and two girls died when their car collided with an articulated lorry on the N17 at Castlegar, near Claremorris.

The victims are understood to be a mother and her two daughters.

Following a Cabinet meeting, incoming Taoiseach Simon Harris offered his "sympathies" to those who were grieving their loss.

"I do know that at a time of tragedy, our country and our communities never fail to rally and support people in their grief," he said.

"Of course, on wider road safety issues, this is something I want to take a very active interest in.

"I am very conscious of the fact that we are losing far too many lives on our roads."

Claremorris-Swinford Municipal District Cathaoirleach Gerry Murray said it was especially sad the tragedy took place “in the run up to Easter”. 

“For this particular family to have to endure this sort of an ordeal over the next few days and, indeed, indefinitely, this is a huge, huge tragedy for all involved but particularly for the family that are impacted by this,” he said. 

The incident happened on the main route between Galway and Sligo shortly before 2pm. No other injuries were reported.

Late last night, both the car and a van, which was not directly involved, were taken from the scene. 

However, the road remained closed overnight as emergency services struggled to remove the truck.

The identities of the victims are not yet known. 

Gardaí have also issued an appeal for images of the scene which are circulating on social media not to be shared further. 

This crash comes just hours after business owners Tom and Eileen Mahon, both died in a house fire in Swinford, just 30 kilometres away.

Main image shows Gardaí at the scene in County Mayo. Image: Sheila Naughton