#Diving - The Irish Underwater Council's national diving officer says the diving community has been "devastated" by the "unprecedented" number of diving deaths in recent weeks.
Dermot Moynihan's comments in The Irish Times come after an incident this past Monday (14 July) in which a 55-year-old man got into difficulty after a controlled ascent from a 40-minute dive off Inishbofin in Co Galway.
Despite the best efforts of a local nurse and doctor on scene, the man was pronounced dead after transfer to Mayo General Hospital.
His death marks the sixth diving fatality around the Irish coast since 14 June, when a Limerick man died while diving near Roches Point in Cork Harbour.
The following day, a Polish national died after a rapid ascent from a dive off Malin Head in Co Donegal, and a fortnight later two men in their 60s lost their lives after a diving incident at a wreck site off the Baltimore in West Cork.
The latest tragedy comes just two days after 57-year-old Presbyterian minister Rev Dr Stewart Jones died in a diving-related accident off the Donegal coast, when he was struck by a 'freak wave' on the surface following an ascent from a combination dive - a highly technical practice only for experienced divers.
Earlier this week Irish Water Safety chief John Leech called on divers to ensure they are well trained and "diving fit", highlighting the risks that even normal dives present.
The Irish Times has more on the story HERE.
