Cork father drowned trying to save son and his girlfriend after freak wave

A father drowned while trying to save his son and his girlfriend after they were swept out to sea by a freak wave last summer, an inquest heard yesterday.

Coroner for West Cork Frank O’Connell heard evidence that Barry Ryan, aged 51, who was living in Baltimore, Co Cork, died from drowning near the coastal village’s iconic Beacon landmark on June 30.

Mr Ryan’s son, Barry Davis Ryan, aged 21, a student at Cork Institute of Technology, whose body was recovered from the sea 10 days later, and Barry’s girlfriend, Niamh O’Connor, aged 20, from Glanmire on the outskirts of Cork City, also drowned in the same incident.