A man in his 60s became the second victim of a farm tragedy this week after a quad bike incident in Co Mayo on Thursday.
Anthony (Tony) O’Malley (67), from Castlebar, Co Mayo, was killed instantly when his quad bike overturned while he was spreading weedkiller.
A post mortem examination will take place at Mayo University Hospital on Friday.
Both An Garda Siochána and the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) have started an investigation.
It is understood the accident was discovered on Friday evening when Mr O’Malley’s wife, Katie, began looking for him after he failed to come indoors for his evening meal.
The local community is devastated by the loss of the popular farmer who retired from Mayo County Council about two years ago.
“Tony was a great craftsman,” said Michael Kilcoyne, an elected member of Mayo County Council.
“He was well known in Castlebar for his work over the years both with Castlebar Town Council and subsequently Mayo County Council.”
Councillor Kilcoyne said he wanted to express his deepest sympathy to the family.
Mr O’Malley is survived by his wife Katie and a son, Kevin.
The O’Malley family sustained a grievous blow in August of last year with the untimely death of Tony and Katie’s other son, Tony Junior.
The tragic death is the second farm fatality in the Republic this week.
On Tuesday, Martin Kehoe Jnr, a son of Martin Kehoe, the world renowned
ploughman, died in an agricultural accident involving a molasses tank.
Mr Kehoe’s death cast a cloud over the National Ploughing Championships , running this week in Co Offaly.