Man in his 20s dies while swimming in River Suir

Man’s body is recovered in Carrick-on-Suir after his brother raised the alarm

A man in his mid-20s has died after getting into difficulty while swimming in the River Suir in Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary. File photograph: Cyril Byrne/The Irish Times
A man in his mid-20s has died after getting into difficulty while swimming in the River Suir in Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary. File photograph: Cyril Byrne/The Irish Times

A man in his mid-20s has died after getting into difficulty while swimming in the River Suir in Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary, on Monday afternoon.

Gardaí were alerted to the incident shortly before 5pm, after the man’s brother raised the alarm.

They carried out search-and-rescue operations with the help of Carrick River Rescue and the Coast Guard.

The man’s body was recovered shortly after the search-and-rescue operations began.

READ MORE

A Garda spokeswoman told The Irish Times: “Gardaí in Carrick-on-Suir are investigating the sudden death of a man in his mid-20s this afternoon.

“Gardaí were alerted at 4.50pm that a man was in difficulty in the River Suir, where he was swimming with his brother.

“The man’s brother went for assistance and a body was recovered with the help of Carrick River Rescue, ambulance service and Coast Guard.”

Postmortem

The man’s body was removed to Waterford Regional Hospital, where a postmortem will take place.

The Marine Rescue Co-ordination Centre (MRCC) in Dublin sent the Rescue 117 helicopter and crew to the scene to assist with the operations.

Local Sinn Féin councillor David Dunne told The Irish Times that a number of people had been swimming in the area over the past few days.

“Unfortunately, a terrible tragedy occurred in Carrick-on-Suir this evening. A young man was swimming with his friends near the rear of Ormond Castle in the town. It’s a popular spot for young people locally.

“The young man was originally not from the area but had been living here. I would know him to see, so it’s a deep tragedy to hit the area,” said Mr Dunne.

“I would like to offer my deepest condolences to the young man’s family and friends.”

Sarah Burns

Sarah Burns

Sarah Burns is a reporter for The Irish Times