Two boys, 15, drown in abandoned quarry after one ‘swam out to rescue his friend’
The two 15-year-olds were among a group of teenagers who had been swimming in an abandoned quarry near Knockanean, Ireland.
TWO teenagers have died after they got into difficulty while swimming in an abandoned quarry this afternoon.
The two 15-year-olds were among a group of teenagers who had been swimming in the quarry near Knockanean, Ireland.
It’s believed that one of the boys got into difficulty while swimming from one bank to another and his friend swam out to help him but also got into difficulty.
Gardai confirmed in a statement that the two youths had passed away in hospital.
The statement read: "Gardaí and emergency services were called to an incident at a quarry lake at Knockanean, Ennis, Co Clare at 3.30pm on May 31 2018.
"Gardai were notified that people were in difficulty in the water, at Knockanean quarry lake, and assistance was required.
"A rescue helicopter from Shannon was dispatched, and two 15 year old boys were taken from the lake. They are both believed to be from Ennis.
"They were airlifted to University Hospital Limerick in a critical condition, but were later pronounced dead.";
Onlookers on the shore raised the alarm at around 3.30pm and a major rescue operation was launched.
A Coast Guard helicopter was quickly scrambled, along with members of the Civil Service.
Fire crews quickly located the first casualty lying on rocks below the surface. The second boy was found just a few metres away.
A former firefighter tried to dive down and reach one of the casualties but was unable to grab hold of him. Despite several desperate attempts to reach the boy, he was left exhausted.
A local man raced to the scene with his diving equipment and recovered both boys to the surface. Fire personnel assisted the diver with recovering the casualties from the water and helped ambulance paramedics with CPR.
A garda investigation into the incident is now being carried out.
It's known that at least one young man drowned at the same location in the early 80s.
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A number signs are visible in the area all warning people not to swim in the quarry. One reads: “Danger. Deep water. No swimming”. Another says: “Danger. Silt pond. Deep water. Keep clear”.
One local man said: “When I heard the sirens and saw the helicopter my heart just sank. I knew it was the quarry. I just knew it wasn’t good. The helicopter was on the ground for a good hour and took towards Limerick. It’s awful altogether.”
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