A 53-year-old Ghanaian man based in Skibbereen, Ireland, Moses Odonkor, has died in a freak accident on a fishing trawler off the Porcupine Bank near the Blasket Islands.
In what Irish authorities have described as a tragic workplace accident, Mr Odonkor sustained fatal injuries on February 4, 2025, when his team was deployed to the Cork coast.
He sustained the injuries when he was casting heavy fishing nets into the water with other crew members.
The authorities said his crewmates made several attempts to rescue him but he died before the arrival of emergency services to the scene.
According to a spokesperson for the Irish police, they have been notified and the incident is being treated as a freak accident.
“The Marine Casualty Investigation Unit, Marine Survey Office, Health and Safety Authority and the local coroner have all been notified,” the spokesperson stated.
Mr Odonkor had lived in Ireland for 20 years before his tragic passing.
He is survived by his wife Philomena and sons Isaac and Emmanuel.
The family is not new to tragedy as Odonkor’s two-year-old son Joshua, died after choking on a grape he was eating in 2023.
Meanwhile, plans are far advanced to return his body to Ghana later in the week for burial and final funeral rights.