Garda’s cliff death 10th such fatality

THE off-duty garda who died after falling from a cliff in Co Clare on Thursday was the 10th person to be killed in such circumstances on the Clare coastline in the past five years.

Garda Adrian Martin, from Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan, had been fishing from a 75-foot cliff near Dunlicky, a short distance from the popular resort town of Kilkee, when he fell to his death. His six-year-old son witnessed the tragedy.

The Clones-based garda had been on holiday in Kilkee with his family at the time of the accident. It is believed his fishing line got snagged on the cliff face and he fell to his death while trying to free it. It is also believed an onshore wind may have played a part in the accident.

His body was quickly recovered by Kilkee Marine Rescue Service volunteers who rushed him back to their nearby base. Gda Martin was pronounced dead a short time later, however.

Before Thursday’s tragedy, nine non-Irish nationals, some resident in Ireland at the time, have died since July 2006 at various locations along almost the length of the west Clare coast. In seven cases, the victims were fishing and fell or were swept from rocks or cliffs ranging in height from 20ft-80ft. Two others died after losing their footing while walking along cliff edges.

Gda Martin was the first Irish person to be killed while fishing on the Clare coast during that period.

Clare County Council’s water safety development officer, Liam Griffin, said: “This is another terrible accident. People just don’t see the dangers. We would never recommend anyone goes fishing from rocks or low cliffs but if people insist on doing so, they should be conscious of their surroundings and the dangers.”

“People must ensure they have all the necessary safety equipment and also need to be aware of the weather conditions at the time,” Mr Griffin added.

Like Thursday’s tragedy, all previous nine incidents in Clare involved men and occurred in front of family members, including young children, or while friends watched in horror.

Fatal falls

- In October 2006, a 35-year-old Polish father-of-four was swept to his death while fishing at Tullig Point near the village of Cross, a short distance from Kilkee. Another man swam to safety and raised the alarm.

- A month later, a Latvian man aged 27 died in front of his wife and child when he was swept into the sea by a rogue wave while fishing at the Blue Pool near Doonbeg.

- In June 2007, also at the Blue Pool, a Moldovan man was killed after he was washed from the rocks by a freak wave.

- A month later, a 35-year-old Polish man died after falling 30 feet from a cliff while fishing at the Pollack Holes on Kilkee Bay.

- In July 2009, a 42-year-old Frenchman died after he fell from the rocks while fishing at Ballyreen, north of Doolin.

- In November of that year, in an almost identical incident at the same location, a 34-year-old man fell to his death while fishing. The accident happened in front of his wife, 10-year-old daughter and a friend.

- Before Thursday’s tragedy, the last known accidental cliff death in Clare happened in May last year. A 29-year-old Polish man, who had been fishing with friends, was swept from the rocks at Ross Bay on the northern shore of the Loop Head Peninsula.

- Two other people have died after falling from cliffs while sight-seeing on cliff edges in Co Clare since 2006.

Picture: Garda Adrian Martin: Fell to his death off Co Clare cliff.