Brave Jonathan also saved child’s life in US

THE young Corkman who was one of two men drowned after saving a couple in the sea off the West Cork last Sunday heroically saved a young child while he was travelling in America two years ago.

Cork woman Kay Murray yesterday told RTÉ’s Gerry Ryan Show how Glanmire native Jonathan Herlihy saved her nine-year-old grandnephew who had run out in front of a bus.

She said Jonathan had been in Ocean City in America with her daughter’s boyfriend and family members already living in the US had travelled to the city from their homes to meet up with the young men.

“They brought with them my brother’s two grandchildren who are identical twins. They were nine years of age,” she said. “They were a little bit hyper as boys would be in a new city. They were walking up the street in Ocean City when one of the boys, Alex, stepped out into the road and a bus was thundering down the road and only for the quick action of Jonathan, he plucked him out of the way of the bus in the nick of time.

“All the young people were so shocked because they knew if Jonathan had not done that my grandnephew would have been killed.”

Ms Murray paid tribute to the young man and said it must be in the 22-year-old’s nature to act so heroically.

She described how hard his death had hit the local community. Jonathan had returned from Santa Cruz early last week to attend the funeral of the family member of one of his friends.

Ms Murray talked of how his college soccer teammates had cut their tour of the US short after hearing of what had happened to the young man.

“They were all so distraught,” she said. “So many people in Cork will know and love him from his school, UCC and the soccer team.”