Tributes paid after mother and son die in house fire
Castlerahan GAA vrs Crosserlough clash called off. Minute silence observed at county games. Post mortems to take place.
The two people who died in a fatal fire at their home near Ballyjamesduff area last night have been named locally as mother and son Kathleen and Michael Lynch.
Tributes have been paid to the deceased following the terrible tragedy, and impact of their death have been felt far and wide throughout the local area.
Due to the tragic circumstances, the Castlerahan GAA and Crosserlough Kiernan's Service Station Senior Football tie, scheduled for earlier this afternoon, was called off.
Ms Lynch had four grandsons all of whom played on the Intermediate winning Castlerahan team last year, and her granddaughter played with the club's Intermediate Championship winning ladies' side also.
Another grandson plays with Castlerahan's U17's, and Ms Lynch's son Andrew is heavily involved in helping coach underage levels.
Ms Lynch has been fondly remembered in post shared by Castlerahan GAA for he "famous" heart warming soup which she made for participants after they took part in the annual Lacken Lake Christmas swim.
The club acknowledged that her son Michael, who died alongside her in the fire at their Lackenmore home, between Ballyjamesduff and New Inns, in the early hours of this morning, September 10.
"Michael was a great supporter, a constant at every Castlerahan game and rarely missed a match".
A minute silence was observed at games across the county as a mark of respect.
Gardaí are in the process of conducting a full investigation. The scene was preserved for a technical examination after the bodies of both deceased were taken to the mortuary at Cavan General Hospital, where a post-mortem is due to take place.
A spokesperson for An Garda Siochana confirmed to the Celt: "Gardaí were alerted to a fire at a domestic residence in Ballyjamesduff, Co. Cavan shortly before 2.00am on Sunday morning, 10th September 2023.
"Fire Services attended the scene and extinguished the fire.
"A woman (aged in her 80s) and a man (aged in his 50s) were pronounced deceased at the scene. The bodies of the deceased have been taken to the mortuary at Cavan General Hospital where a post-mortem will take place in due course."
They added: "The scene of the fire is currently preserved for a technical examination by the Garda Technical Bureau. The Coroner has been notified. Enquiries are ongoing."
Fine Gael councillor Trevor Smith described what happened as a "terrible tragedy", and said that the "thoughts and prayers of the whole community are with the family, their relatives and friends at this difficult time".