A four-year-old child has been killed a farm accident in Ballinaboy, Belmullet, Co. Mayo.

The farm death occurred when the boy was struck by a moving trailer around 8.30pm last night (Wednesday July 29),

He was brought to Belmullet District Hospital where he was pronounced dead, his body was removed to Castlebar Hospital where a postmortem is to take place today.

It is reported that the boy was on holidays with his parents when the farm death occurred.

The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) and the Gardai are investigating.

It brings to 10 the total number of farming-related deaths in Ireland this year and is the second to occur in days – a man was killed from a fall from a tractor in Kerry earlier this week.

According to the HSA, age and location are key factors in farm deaths in Ireland.

It says that deaths in agriculture, unlike many other sectors, generally involve family members including children and elderly persons.

Age is a major contributing factor in farm incidents in Ireland (both fatal and non-fatal) with the average age of an Irish farmer now standing at 57 years and increasing, it says.

Earlier this month there was another farm death when a woman was killed on a farm on the Dublin/Meath border when she was attacked by a cow. It follows a similar incident in In May when a woman was killed in Monaghan after being attacked by a cow. Also in May a two-year-old child was killed in Co. Cork.

In January two farm deaths occurred involving tractors in separate accidents.