Four people have drowned in separate incidents within the past 24 hours.
A19-year-old man drowned in the River Shannon near Athlone, Co Westmeath this afternoon, after three other drownings in the south east yesterday.
The man got into difficulty at about 3.30pm when out swimming with a group of friends.
He was discovered in the water some 15 minutes later and brought to Portiuncula Hospital, Ballinasloe in a critical condition. However he was subsequently pronounced dead.
Gardai, ambulance personnel and local sub aqua club were involved in the search
Two bodies were also recovered today from rivers in the southeast bringing to three the number of deaths by drowning in the region over a twelve-hour period on Wednesday night.
The rivers Barrow, Nore and Suir, known as “The Three Sisters”, each claimed a life. Two of the drownings occurred in Co Kilkenny; the third in Co Tipperary.
This morning members of a sub-aqua unit recovered the body of a 24-year-old local woman from the River Nore in the centre of Kilkenny. She had apparently gone swimming at about 11.30pm last night, got into difficulties and went missing.
Her body was found in three metres of water between Green’s Bridge and John’s Bridge at 11am.
Early on Wednesday evening, a 22-year-old man from New Ross, Co Wexford drowned while swimming in the River Barrow at about 6.15pm at Graiguenamanagh, Co Kilkenny. Frantic efforts by other swimmers to rescue him were unsuccessful.
In Co Tipperary, a woman’s body was recovered from the River Suir in the early hours of this morning. The emergency services were alerted after clothing and personal effects were found in the North Quay area of Carrick-on-Suir at 10pm on Wednesday night.
Community leaders and water safety officials have called for extra vigilance as large crowds have been flocking to rivers due to the exceptionally warm weather.