Martin McGoldrick
Tragic drowning incident
By Connla Young
c.young@dailyireland.com
A County Tyrone community was trying to come to terms with the loss of a popular teenager after a tragic drowning accident at the weekend.
Nineteen-year-old Martin McGoldrick drowned while swimming at Corrany Lake near the border village of Roslea, Co Fermanagh, at around 11pm on Saturday. The teenager, his older brother and two friends were making their way back from Clones where they watched Tyrone beat Cavan in the Ulster Championship just hours earlier.
The coastguard, supported by an Irish air-sea rescue helicopter, searched for the young man after the accident. The search was called off after several hours and resumed at first light yesterday. The PSNI’s underwater search team eventually recovered the teenager’s body at around 1.45pm on Sunday.
The young men are understood to have gone swimming after stopping at a popular picnic area on the shores of the small lake as they made their way home from the Co Monaghan town. Popular with trout anglers, Corrany Lake is said by locals to be soft bottomed with waters that run no deeper than five metres.
Canon Patrick Marron of St Lawrence’s parish, Fintona, Co Tyrone, spoke of the shock felt by the entire community at the teenager’s death.
“It is a real tragedy for someone so young to lose their life like this. The wider family and parishioners have shown a great deal of solidarity and christian support. This is a large family and very popular in the area. Martin was a good worker, he was working since he was 16 and had a great future. It is a real tragedy to see a young life lost under these circumstances,” he said.
Members of the McGoldrick family and friends gathered in Co Fermanagh amid distressing scenes yesterday as PSNI divers searched for the young man’s remains.
Fermanagh district councillor Brian McCaffrey was with the family at Coranny Lake when the young man’s body was eventually recovered.
“It is terrible to see someone so young lose their life in this way and the people of this area extend their condolences to the family,” he said.
Mr McGoldrick is survived by his brother Ryan, sister Sinead and parents Philomena and Bosco.
The young man will be buried after requiem mass at St Lawrence’s parish church, Fintona, on Wednesday at 11am with burial in the adjoining cemetery.
