Boy, five, drowns in pond

A concerned mother has revealed that her teenage son had to endure a nine-hour wait in A&E

June 30 2014 01:37 PM

A five-year-old boy has drowned in a pond.

The youngster was discovered in the water in a housing estate in the Tyrrelstown area of west Dublin at about 9.30am this morning.

Emergency services were called to the scene but it is understood resuscitation attempts were unsuccessful.

Gardai said the child was pronounced dead at Temple Street Children's Hospital at 11.20am.

The child's death is being treated as a tragic accident.

The drowning is the second in west Dublin in the last fortnight after 13-year-old Ricky Osagie died while rescuing two of his friends on June 20.

They had been swimming in a man-made lake in Waterville Hall in the Blanchardstown area during the recent heatwave when they got into difficulty.

It is believed the talented footballer swam to help rescue them and got into difficulty himself.

Local representatives in the Tyrrelstown area said the five-year-old boy was discovered by a passer-by.

Dublin Fire Brigade were called to the scene as well as local gardai.

Messages of condolence were posted on social media as news of the tragedy spread, including from the Tyrrelstown Residents Association which covers 2,300 households.

"The TRA are saddened to hear of the tragic death of a young boy in the lake in Tyrrelstown Park. Our thoughts are with his family and friends," the group said in a Facebook post.

The man-made park and pond on the edge of the estate where the tragedy happened is Tyrrelstown Park and is the property of Fingal County Council.

A spokeswoman for the local authority said staff wished to send condolences to the family of the young boy.

"We wish to offer our sincere sympathies to the family in what is obviously a very tragic accident," the spokeswoman said.

David McGuinness, a Fianna Fail councillor who lives in Tyrrelstown, said local residents have been left traumatised by the child's death.

"My thoughts and sympathies are first and foremost with the family today," he said.

"Needless to say it's a terrible, tragic incident and it's the second similar incident in the area in just over a week."

The parkland, including the man-made lake, has been developed over the course of the year after 64 acres on the edge of the estates was given over for landscaping.

Mr McGuinness said: "There are questions to be asked in the coming weeks and months in relation to these places and access to man-made lakes.

"We are going to have to look at this situation and see if there are ways we can improve safety. These places are amenities for the local people but clearly when a five-year-old can leave home and access public waterways we need to look at it from a safety point of view."