One man died and his brother is in hospital after their car plunged into the harbour in Cobh, Co Cork, yesterday afternoon.
As emergency services tried to save the life of Patrick O'Mahoney from Cobh, his mother and family looked on from the quayside.
His brother, Eddie, was found clutching a flimsy metal ladder at the quayside screaming for divers to help Patrick, who was trapped in the car in 20 metres of water.
The tragedy occurred at the Deep Water Quay in Cobh at 1.40pm yesterday.
A Naval Service member on duty a few hundred metres away at the Naval Service base on Haulbowline Island spotted the vehicle entering the water and immediately raised the alarm.
Naval divers from the base who were on an exercise close by in rigid inflatable boats also sped to the scene.
They arrived quickly and took Eddie from the water and immediately began a search for his brother in the missing car.
Two units of Cork Fire Brigade rushed to the scene and two inshore lifeboats from Crosshaven travelled across the harbour.
An ambulance crew treated Eddie who appeared to be unhurt but in a state of deep shock.
Three divers circled around one of the black inflatable boats. Close by an orange buoy marked the spot where the car was located.Both men were well known locally.
The Deep Water Quay is an important berthing location for luxury ocean-going liners.
Shortly after 3pm the body of Patrick was taken from the water and a medic performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for almost 15 minutes.
The quayside was sealed off and as a crane and a recovery vehicle arrived at the scene, the silver Ford Focus car was winched from the water.
Superintendent Pat Sheehan confirmed that one man was dead and another was being comforted by family members. He appealed for any witnesses.
"It would have been busy around here at the time of the incident . . . I would appeal for anyone with information to come forward," he said.
Gardaí are investigating the circumstances surrounding the tragedy.
According to sources close to the family, Patrick, whose 25th birthday was yesterday, and Eddie were at the family home earlier in the day.
Shortly after 1pm Patrick left the house followed closely by Eddie.
Patrick drove to the quayside, with Eddie as a passenger.
Then, suddenly, the car was seen to disappear into the water.