One of Ireland's oldest men, Michael O'Connor, has died at the age of 108.
He passed away this morning in Kenmare Community Hospital, Co Kerry, a friend of his family confirmed.
She said he enjoyed "rude good health" until very recently at his home in Muckross.
Mr O'Connor - believed to be the oldest man living in Ireland - would have celebrated his 109th birthday on 21 October.
He was born in Glencar in south Kerry in 1913.
He left Ireland as a young man and followed a career as a radio operator during World War Two.
Mr O'Connor travelled the world with the Merchant Navy and survived the sinking of his ship by a German U-boat as well as the blockade of The Bay of Bengal by the Japanese.
He was one of the oldest survivors of the previous pandemic to hit Europe, the Spanish flu, which he contracted as a young boy.
While he got over the illness, tragically, his mother did not.
As the country comes together to commemorate the centenary of the death of Michael Collins today, Mr O'Connor recalled "families against families" following the Irish Civil War. "A lot of bitterness prevailed."
Speaking to RTÉ last year, he said: "The secrets to a long life? Be honest in your dealings with others and try to avoid doing wrong by anybody."
