This article is from page 1 of the 2012-05-22 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 1 JPG
IT WAS an unavoidable, freak accident that shocked the parish. That was the consensus in Cree yesterday as the West Clare village tried to come to terms with the death of local man Michael O’Dea (74) following a farming accident on Saturday.
Mr O’Dea had been dosing a new- born calf with his son Eddie on the family farm in Clonina when the cow turned on the younger farmer.
It is understood that Mr O’Dea then moved to save his son and was fatally injured by the cow.
Eddie, whose ankle was broken in the attack, managed to raise the alarm, but his father was pronounced dead at the scene.
Local County Councillor Bill Chambers (FF) described the late farmer as “a grand man and a great man for the dogs”.
As well as farming, Mr O’Dea’s biggest interest was his greyhounds and he spent many a St Stephen’s Day at the Cooraclare Coursing Festival.
Chairman of Clare ICMSA, Martin McMahon said that the farming community was in shock and sympathised with Mr O’Dea’s family.
“Losing someone like that is a big shock and a big tragedy,” he said.
“At the best of times, no matter how careful you are, you can get caught. You could have the quietest cow in the world and after calving she could become the crossest cow on the farm. A lot of cases are unavoidable,” said the farming expert.
“Loading animals and things like that, there is a risk no matter how careful you are. Sometimes it is just outside your control.”
Gardaí from Kilrush and inspectors from the Health and Safety Authority are investigating the tragic incident.
Mr O’Dea is survived by his wife Maisie, four daughters and two sons.
The details of Mr O’Dea’s funeral were not announced at time of press last night (Monday).