THE man killed in a car crash early this morning had survived cancer three times.
Ryan McCaul had been in a coma for a montha after a crash almost a decade ago and had also beaten meningitis twice.
Mr McCaul died in hospital after a collision between a car and van on the main Derry to Belfast road just after 6 am this morning.
Three other people were also taken to Altnagelvin Hospital for treatment but were later discharged.
Relative and Sinn Fein Councillor Tony McCaul said his mother was inconsolable when he visited the family home.
He said: “The family are in bits, they’re devastated. I couldn’t even speak to his mother as she was in such a bad state. She is just heartbroken.
“He was a good lad, a really bubbly fella. He always had a smile on his face.
“He beat cancer three times and ran a lot of marathons for cancer charities.
“He had a very tough life with everything that happened and it’s just tragic for the family and wider community, he told Belfast Live.
Ryan worked as a CAD technician with E&I Engineering Ltd in Burnfoot in Co Donegal.
He was from the Gortnaghey area of Co Derry and was just a few miles from his home when the crash occurred.
Sinn Fein MLA Caoimhe Archibald said her thoughts were with the dead man’s family.
“I would like to express my sympathies to the family and friends of the man who has died as a result of this morning’s crash,” she said.
“This is the second death on the A6 in weeks and, as we enter into the winter months, I would urge all road users to exercise care and caution on the roads at all times and to allow for extra travelling time if conditions are poor.”
Last month, Loreto Douglas, 64, a child care worker and former nun from the Culmore area of Derry, died after a three-vehicle crash on a stretch of the A6 at the Glenshane Pass.
She was on her way to a funeral in Newtownards when the accident happened.
Tags: