Honours for men who drowned during rescue

THE bravery of two men who drowned while trying to rescue two swimmers in west Cork last year was recalled yesterday when they were posthumously honoured by the state organisation with responsibility for promoting water safety.

The efforts of Peter O’Keeffe, 36, and Jonathan Herlihy, 23, were recognised at the annual national awards ceremony hosted by Irish Water Safety.

A total of 23 recipients were involved in 13 separate near-drowning incidents during 2006 which resulted in 14 lives being saved.