AN EXPERIENCED Irish fisherman in his 70s has been found dead off the coast of Co. Donegal.
Father-of-five James Byrne, who has been described as "lovely" by those who knew him, died after his boat ran aground off Teelin on Wednesday night.
The vessel was spotted around 9pm and the coastguard were sent out to investigate, but found no one on board after searching the boat.
Mr Byrne was found dead short time later in the water after locals discovered his body - which had a lifejacket on.
He was taken to Letterkenny University Hospital where a postmortem was carried out yesterday. A fisherman all his life, Mr Byrne was a veteran seaman.
A full investigation into how he ended up overboard has now been launched.
A friend of his' told the Irish Mirror: "James was really retired and he just fished to pass the time. If you went down to the pier he would just give you the fish.
"He was a lovely man with a grown-up family and the thoughts of everyone are with his wife and elderly mother."
See More: Co Donegal, Irish Fisherman, Irishman Dead
