A man is being treated in hospital in Limerick after being struck “on the back of the head with a hatchet”.
The man, believed to be aged in his fifties, was attacked in Kilteely, Co Limerick, around 6pm, Sunday.
According to sources the man is “lucky to be alive”.
The incident is understood to have arisen from heightened tensions involving three families.
“It happened because of a family feud,” said a reliable source.
The source added that the parties involved had “relocated from Limerick city to Kilteely”.
The hatchet attack is believed to have occurred after parties involved had been socialising at a pub in the normally quiet east Limerick village.
A source said the incident arose because of a “feud” involving three families.
A car which sped from the village reportedly crashed near Nicker village in south east Limerick, and a number of people were subsequently taken to University Hospital Limerick.
Gardaí said two people, believed to be males were taken to hospital from the crash scene.
A source described the medical conditions of everyone taken to hospital as “stable”.
Separately, sources said the man attacked with the hatchet “got a belt of a hatchet into the head”.
They added: “It split him open. He was lying on the road. He’s lucky he’s alive.”
Gardaí in Bruff have appealed for information on 061-382940.