Father of two young children killed by fumes from stove fire
A father-OF-TWO has died after apparently inhaling poisonous fumes from a wood-burning stove in his own home.
Declan Murphy (38) of Lime Tree Lodge, Woodbrook, Portarlington, Co Laois, was rushed to Midland Regional Hospital in Portlaoise shortly after the incident on Thursday at about 9.30pm, but later died from his injuries.
His wife Siobhan and another man, understood to be relative of the dead man, were also treated in hospital after they inhaled some of the toxic gas. Both are said to be okay after the incident.
The couple, from Lime Tree Lodge, Woodbrook, Portarlington in Co Laois, have two small children aged three years and six months. It is not known whether the children were in the house when the incident occurred but they did not require medical treatment.
The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) and the gardai are investigating.
A spokesman for the HSA said that the authority was aware of the incident and an inspector had visited the Murphy's home to examine the circumstances.
While mystery still surrounds the incident, it is understood that Mr Murphy had gone to add wood pellets to the stove when he was overcome by the fumes.
Gifted
His wife and the other man, who tried to pull Mr Murphy to safety, were also affected but managed to escape serious injury.
Local councillor Ray Cribbin said the couple were very well known in the area and that the whole community was shocked by the "terrible" incident.
He described Mr Murphy as "a most gifted man" who was able to build a house from start to finish.
He had worked in the building trade for some time and had recently returned from a spell working in Dubai.
"This is a tragedy of the worst kind," Mr Cribbin said.
"Our hearts go out to the family."
A spokeswoman for the Midland Regional Hospital Portlaoise confirmed that Mr Murphy's wife and the other man would be "okay".
Gardai said they are not treating Mr Murphy's death as suspicious.
- Grainne Cunningham
Irish Independent
