Ballycotton in shock after triple death tragedy

The Co Cork town of Ballycotton is coming to terms with the tragic deaths of a father and his two young daughters this morning.

The girls were found dead in a house in East Cork this morning shortly after a man was killed in a nearby car crash.

The two - aged six and two - were found in their home just outside the village of Ballycotton at around 10.30am. A doctor and a priest were called to the house after the alarm was raised.

A man, believed to be the girls’ father, had died in a single-vehicle car accident several miles away on the Ballycotton to Shanagarry Road at about 9.45am.

A Garda spokesman said the dead man was discovered in a car which was destroyed in a fire after crashing into a tree.

The man who died was aged in his 40s and the owner of the Toyota Yaris which crashed about one mile from the family home.

No other vehicle was involved.

One of the young girls was a pupil at the local Realt na Mara National School in Ballycotton.

Principal Derry Keogh issued a statement on behalf of the board of management, staff and pupils expressing their deep shock and sadness.

“We learned this morning of the death of one of our pupils and other family members,” Mr Keogh said.

“This is a terrible tragedy for the family, the school and our community. We are deeply saddened by these events.

“Our sympathy and thoughts are with the family and friends at this terrible time.”

Mr Keogh said the school’s six teachers were focused on the 98 pupils at the school and helping them cope with the loss of a young friend and a younger sibling.

“We will help the children to the best of our ability,” the principal said.

“To allow the staff to focus on the children we appeal for privacy and will make no further comment at this time.”

The school remained open during the day and will continue to stay open over the coming days to support parents and offer them advice and guidance.

The school requested the support of the National Education Psychological Service and has also put in place a critical incident management plan.

A Garda spokesman described the deaths as a tragic incident and said relatives and extended family were still being informed.

It is understood local Garda detectives spent some time attempting to contact the children’s mother, who had gone to work in Cork city this morning.

The two daughters were found in a room inside the house.

The office of the state pathologist was contacted this morning by gardaí after a doctor pronounced the children dead at the scene.

The scene remains sealed off and State Pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy is due to arrive later this evening.

The assistant state pathologist, Dr Margaret Bolster, is due at the scene to carry out preliminary examinations. It is expected the bodies will be removed to Cork University Hospital later today.

Officers in Midleton were investigating both incidents this morning and the house remained sealed off.

Archbishop Dermot Clifford, the Apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Cloyne in Cork, offered his sympathies to the family.

“I am deeply shocked to learn of the tragic deaths of two children and their father in Ballycotton today,” the cleric said.

“My heart goes out to all concerned; the children’s mother, to the extended family, relatives and friends and to the community of Ballycotton and to the people of the whole parish of Cloyne.

“On behalf of the people and priests of the diocese, I offer my sincere and heartfelt condolences and I ask for prayers for the deceased and for those who are grieving.”

Additional reporting courtesy of the Evening Echo.