Fundraiser for Chloe Hipson tops €30k to bring her home
By ArdeePost Reporter
A wave of grief continues to sweep across Louth and beyond as more than €30,000 has now been raised to bring 21-year-old Chloe Hipson home to Scotland following last Saturday’s devastating road tragedy near Dundalk.
Chloe, originally from Bellshill in Lanarkshire and a second-year student at Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT), was one of five young friends who lost their lives when their Volkswagen Golf collided with a Toyota Land Cruiser on the L3168 at Gibstown shortly after 9 pm on Saturday, November 15.
The crash also left another young man from Ardee—who had been travelling in the same car—seriously injured. He was treated at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda for non-life-threatening injuries and has since been discharged. The occupants of the second vehicle, a man and a woman in their 20s, were also hospitalised with non-life-threatening injuries.
Chloe tragically died alongside her close friends Chloe McGee (23), Alan McCluskey (23), Dylan Commins (23), and Shay Duffy (21). The group had been travelling together for a night out in Dundalk when the collision occurred.
Her death notice described her as the “beloved daughter of Ryan and Toni, sister of Ryan and Tommy, and adored aunt of Brodé,” noting that she will be deeply missed by her heartbroken family, grandparents, extended relatives and many friends.
A gathering for family and friends takes place today (Wednesday, November 19) in the Eternity Room at Quinn’s Funeral Home, Dundalk, from 4 pm to 7 pm, ahead of her repatriation to Scotland.
To support funeral costs and the journey to bring Chloe home, Bellshill Amateurs FC—the club where her brother Ryan plays—launched a GoFundMe titled simply “Chloe Hipson.” The club said it was “absolutely devastated” by her loss, describing Chloe as “a young woman ready to live her life, taken far too soon.”
The fundraiser has already surpassed €30,000, with donations continuing to pour in from Ireland, Scotland, and further afield, reflecting the deep impact of the tragedy on both communities.
