An investigation is under way after a man was killed and another seriously injured in a factory explosion. The men were carrying out contract maintenance work on an oil storage tank at the Lakeland Dairies plant in Killeshandra, Co Cavan.
The accident occurred just before noon yesterday. The injured man and the body of the dead man were taken to Cavan General Hospital. They were not named yesterday.
A spokesman for Lakeland Dairies Co-operative Society Ltd, one of the State's largest dairy co-operatives, confirmed with "deep regret" that one man had been pronounced dead following the explosion and subsequent fire.
The company had immediately opened an investigation following the explosion, he said. A spokeswoman for the Health and Safety Authority confirmed that the authority had been notified and that an inspector was due at the scene to investigate.
Four units of the fire brigade attended the fire. A senior fire officer who attended the scene said houses in the area had been evacuated as a precautionary measure in case other oil tanks, containing hundreds of gallons of oil, exploded.
One man is understood to have died at the scene from severe burn injuries.
The second man, who also received serious burns, was found unconscious at the bottom of the concrete storage area containing the tanks when the fire was brought under control.
The two men are believed to have been employees of Atlas Waste Oil, a company based in Portlaoise. A spokeswoman for the company had no comment to make yesterday.
Emergency services personnel at the scene said it was a miracle that anyone within 500 yards of the explosion survived. One who has experience of large bombs in Northern Ireland said it had the same effect "as a 1,000 lb bomb". The blast was heard for miles around.
At late evening the firemen were still at the scene, damping down the smouldering remains of the huge tank.
Garda forensic experts were also at the scene, trying to detect the cause of the explosion.
No Lakeland Dairies personnel were injured in the incident. A spokesman for the company extended condolences to the families of the dead and injured man and said the company wished to thank the emergency services for their effectiveness in dealing with the incident.