A farmer in his 80s has died following an accident with a quad on a farm near Rhode, Co. Offaly, last night, the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) has confirmed to Agriland.
The man was reportedly found after 9pm last night.
An inspector from the HSA is currently en-route to the scene and a full investigation is pending.
This farm death follows a number of fatalities, due to accidents on farms during the month of March.
Two men were killed in separate farm accidents in mid-March.
A man in his 20s died following a farm accident in Co. Wexford, when the quad he was driving overturned. It is believed the man was on his father’s farm when the accident happened.
Meanwhile, a second fatality was confirmed by the HSA on the same morning, as a result of a farm accident in Birr, Co. Offaly. In that incident, a farmer in his 70s was killed when he was struck by a tractor on his farm on the morning of March 15, according to the HSA.
Another farmer in his 50s died just a few days prior to those incidents, as a result of a farm accident involving livestock. It is believed the farmer suffered serious head injuries while working with cattle on his farm near Arigna on Friday, March 10. It is understood that the farmer was working alone at the time.
In the first week of January, a man in his 80s died on a farm in Co. Wexford.
This brings to five the total number of fatalities to occur as a result of accidents on Irish farms in 2017.
Also in January, there was one construction-related death that occurred on a farm. A man in his 30s died following a fall from a wall on a farm in Co. Kerry.