A 12-year-old girl has died after getting into difficulty while swimming in a river in Co Tipperary yesterday afternoon.
A group of friends were enjoying the good weather and playing in a known paddling spot on the banks of the River Suir at the edge of the village of Newcastle, located halfway between the towns of Clonmel and Cahir.
It is understood two of the girls got into difficulty at around 4.20pm due to the strong currents in the water.
One of the girls managed to make it back to land but the other young girl did not.
The group of friends raised the alarm themselves and a multi-agency rescue operation was launched.
The Irish Coast Guard Rescue 117 helicopter from Waterford was overhead within minutes.
Gardaí, National Ambulance Service personnel and firefighters from Clonmel Fire Station's swift water rescue team also attended the scene.
The girl was taken from the water and airlifted to Cork University Hospital. However, she has since passed away.
Gardaí have said that a file will be prepared for the coroner's court.
The girl, who was from the locality, had finished sixth class at Scoil Mhuire National School in Newcastle.
The second girl was taken to South Tipperary General Hospital in Clonmel but did not sustain serious injuries.
Newcastle Parish Priest Fr Michael Toomey will lead a prayer service at Our Lady of the Assumption Church so that the community can come together.
Scoil Mhuire National School is putting in place its critical incident management plan and will also be offering support to the school community.
