Two young children were hospitalised after they fell from the second-storey balcony of an apartment in Waterford city.
The brother and sister were in the apartment in Block C of Mount Suir Manor with other family members this morning.
At around 10.40am, the glass pane at the side of the balcony fell off and the three-year-old boy then fell 20 feet to the ground below.
It appears his seven-year-old sister tried to prevent him falling but she too fell out and down onto the grass below.
The glass panel that fell from the railing of the balcony also landed on the grass, leaving an indentation in the ground with another corner sticking up. The boy landed only a few inches away.
Both the boy and the girl were taken to University Hospital Waterford. The girl was discharged this afternoon but her younger brother has been kept in for monitoring due to the nature of his head injuries.
The apartment block has been under the remit of Waterford City and County Council since 2019.
Residents in the apartment complex have been highlighting issues with their balconies and properties for a number of years.
The council has launched what it described as a "formal investigation" into the incident. An emergency meeting of the council was held in committee this afternoon to update councillors on the situation.
In a short statement, a council spokesperson said: "Waterford City and County Council was notified of a serious incident at the Mount Suir Apartment complex in Waterford City on Friday, 20 March.
"The council has reached out to the family to offer support and a formal investigation into the incident has commenced."
Gardaí attended the apartment complex earlier and examined the scene.
In a brief statement, a spokesperson confirmed that gardaí had responded to a "medical emergency".
"Shortly before 11am this morning, Friday 20th March 2026, gardaí in Waterford assisted other agencies in responding to a medical emergency at a residential property at Mount Suir, Waterford.
"An Garda Síochána has no additional information regarding the incident," the statement said.
A number of workmen could be seen at the apartment this afternoon and were replacing the glass panels of the balcony with sheets of wood.
