Community numbed as boy (4) dies in farm tragedy

A four-and-a-half year-old Carnaross boy lost his life last Saturday evening when when he was fatally injured in a freak accident involving a gate on a neighbour"s farm at Kingsfort. The appalling tragedy which claimed the life of little Shane O"Connor, the youngest of a family of five children, has left his parents and siblings, as well as the local community, stricken with grief in the weeks before Christmas. Shane, who had been attending pre-school, was in the company of his father, Bernard O"Connor, Loughan, and 10-year-old brother, Ronan, at around 5.30pm on Saturday when a gate he was walking past was struck by a bull and fell over, landing on the young boy. The gate was quickly removed from on top of the boy and the emergency services alerted. An ambulance rushed the young victim to Cavan General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Shane was one of four sons and one daughter of Mr O"Connor and his wife, Alice, a member of the Farrelly family of Balrath, Kells. He is survived also by his brothers, Ronan, Brian and Padraig, and sister, Aoife, as well as many extended family relations. Mr O"Connor himself had been bereaved just a number of weeks ago by the death of his uncle, the well-known faith healer, Mr Brian Keelan, who also farmed at Loughan. Both the O"Connor and Farrelly families are very highly regarded in the district and the news of the dreadful tragedy came as a deep shock to members of the community in Carnaross, and also in Kells and Moynalty, where many of their relatives live. In all three communities, there were outpourings of sadness and deep sympathy for the family throughout last Sunday and Monday. The O"Connor children and their mother are long-standing popular members of Kells Swimming Club. A post-mortem examination was carried out at Cavan General Hospital last Sunday and both Gardai and the Health & Safety Agency have been carrying out further enquiries at the site of the accident this week. Gardai have described the incident as an entirely unforeseeable tragedy. Shane"s body was removed to St Ciarán"s Church, Carnaross, yesterday (Tuesday) morning for Mass of the Angels, with burial following in the local cemetery. Monsignor John Hanly, PP, Carnaross, officiated at the funeral ceremony. The high regard in which the family was held was borne out by the very large attendance of mourners both in the church and at the graveside.