A woman in her 70s has died in a farm related incident in Co. Kerry yesterday (Friday, December 1), Gardaí have confirmed.
Gardaí and emergency services were alerted after a woman, who has been named locally as Mary Tangney (née Dennehy) was discovered in a river at Gerahmeen, Beaufort, Co Kerry, shortly after 11.00a.m yesterday.
She was treated at the scene but was pronounced deceased a short time later and was removed to the mortuary at University Hospital Kerry.
Agriland understands the incident occurred while the woman was checking on sheep in an area close by a river near the Gap of Dunloe.
In a social media post, Tangney was described as: “One of the rare few pony-women at the Gap of Dunloe…known fondly by people from all over the world.
“Anyone that called to her home in Gearhameen was always assured of a warm and generous welcome. Mary was a hard worker who had a deep love of the outdoors, farming and her animals.”
Kenneth Jones, the chair of the Irish Farmer’s Association (IFA) in Kerry offered his condolences to the family of the deceased from himself and on behalf of Kerry IFA and said it was “another tragic incident”.
The Health and Safety Authority confirmed to Agriland that they are aware of this incident and are making the relevant enquiries at this time.
Farm accidents
Last week, a death occurred in the Ballyfad area of Co. Wexford on Wednesday, November 22 of a farmer in his 70s who died in a farm accident.
Gardaí confirmed to Agriland that the man’s body was removed from the scene and a post-mortem examination will take place at a later date. The coroner has been notified.
Farming was the sector with the highest number of work-related fatalities in 2022 with 13 deaths, according to the HSA.
Over the past decade, there were on average 19 fatal incidents on Irish farms each year, accounting for more than two in five of all workplace fatalities, according to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM).
18% of farm fatalities involved work with livestock, and attacks by cows with calves accounted for 29% of fatalities caused by livestock.