MOVING tributes have been paid to a grandfather and a dad-of-five killed in separate incidents while repairing storm damage at the weekend.
The fourth and fifth victims of Hurricane Ophelia and Storm Brian were named last night as Wicklow pensioner John Donnelly and Cork farmer Conor Lordan.
Mr Donnelly, aged in his mid-70s, died at his farm in Kilmurray, Co. Wicklow after he fell from a ladder on Saturday afternoon.
He was attempting to fix the roof of a building damaged by the recent storms when he died.
Mourners flocked to Mr Donnelly's farmhouse near to Kilmacanogue on Monday to express condolences to his wife Mary and daughters Fiona and Orla.
Mr Donnelly, who was well-known locally as the former county secretary of the Wicklow Ploughing Association, also had five grandchildren.
In his death notice, the pensioner’s family said he would be “remembered with love” by his relatives, neighbours and wide circle of friends.
Less than 24 hours after Mr Donnelly’s tragic death, farmer Conor Lordan, 52, suffered fatal head injuries when he fell 20ft from a cherry picker in West Cork.
The father-of-five was repairing the roof of a damaged cow shed at a family member’s farm at Kilgarriff, near Clonakilty, when he suffered a fatal fall on Sunday.
Emergency services responded but Mr Lordan was sadly pronounced dead at the scene.
His body was taken to Cork University Hospital for an autopsy.
In a Facebook post on Monday, the local Enniskeane Parish in Co. Cork said friends and family of Mr Lordan had been left devastated by his tragic death.
“A cloud of sadness has descended on our parish and we are reminded of the frailty of human life,” they said.
“Pray for the eternal peaceful rest of Conor Lordan, Liscroneen, who died on Sunday while doing what his heart always did best – giving hands-on help to someone who was affected by the storms.
“Our hearts go out to his wife, their children, and all his extended family.”
Chairman of West Cork Municipal District Council, Cllr Joe Carroll, expressed his sympathies to Mr Lordan’s wife, Colette.
He said: “It is a tragic and terrible time. It is so tough on the family. On behalf of the whole council I would extend deepest sympathies to his family.”
Three other people were killed when ex-Hurricane Ophelia struck Ireland last week.
Michael Pyke, Clare O’Neill and Fintan Goss were all killed in freak accidents involving tree collapses.
