Update:
Friday, 9.30am – The man has been named locally as Paddy Clohessy from Danganelly, Cooraclare.
Earlier: An elderly man has died in hospital following a farm accident in Co Clare earlier today.
The 68-year-old is understood to have been helping a neighbour load cattle onto a trailer when the tragedy occurred around 8.30am today. The accident happened near the village of Cooraclare in the west of the county.
According to locals, the man wasn’t a farmer himself but had been known to help local farmers and had experience working with cattle.
The man was rushed by ambulance to University Hospital Limerick where he pronounced dead around lunchtime.
A Garda spokesman has confirmed that man was pronounced dead in hospital following an incident in Cooraclare; that an investigation is underway and that a file will be prepared for the county coroner in due course.
A spokesman for the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) has also confirmed that they have launched their own investigation into the incident.
Local councillor Bill Chambers, who knew Mr Clohessy, said: “He was pure gentleman and a great community man. He did a lot of work with the tidy towns in Cooraclare and was great to help people including local farmers. He will be sadly missed in the community.”
A post-mortem examination is expected to carried out at University Hospital Limerick on Friday.
