A GARDA investigation is under way into the death of a 53-year-old man in a house fire in Co Clare early yesterday.
Gardaí received a report of a fire at the single-storey, end-of-terrace dwelling at Chapel Drive in Kilrush shortly after 4.00am.
When gardaí arrived the house was well alight. Two units of the fire brigade from Kilrush and emergency medical services also attended.
Firefighters brought the fire under control and found the victim unconscious in the kitchen/living-room area. He was taken by ambulance to the Mid-Western Regional Hospital in Limerick where he was pronounced dead a short time later.
He was named locally as Senan Danaher, a single man.
A Garda spokesman said a forensic examination had been conducted of the scene and “while we have no reason at the moment to believe this fire was suspicious, we will await the outcome of that examination before deciding what course our investigation will take”.
A postmortem examination was also due to be carried out yesterday. It is understood Mr Danaher died as a result of smoke inhalation.