{"id":325466,"date":"2026-03-02T20:27:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-02T20:27:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/325466\/"},"modified":"2026-03-02T20:27:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T20:27:09","slug":"man-died-a-hero-while-trying-to-help-six-people-caught-in-rip-current-at-cork-beach-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/325466\/","title":{"rendered":"Man \u2018died a hero\u2019 while trying to help six people caught in rip current at Cork beach \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

A man \u201cdied a hero\u201d after rushing to help save six people who were struggling in a sudden rip current at Inch Beach in Co Cork<\/a>, Cork County Coroner\u2019s Court has heard.<\/p>\n

A verdict of accidental death was recorded on Monday at the inquest into the death of Stephen O\u2019Callaghan (55), of Ashburton Hill, Montenotte, Cork city. <\/p>\n

O\u2019Callaghan died of acute respiratory failure due to drowning after going to the aid of four children and two adults who got caught in the rip current at about 3pm on August 23rd, 2024.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Callaghan saved the life of a 10-year-old boy and his nephew, Eoghan O\u2019Callaghan, managed to bring the boy\u2019s eight-year-old brother to safety. <\/p>\n

Two other children, both aged 10, and two women were helped to safety by members of a surf club and other locals. <\/p>\n

A woman whose two boys were saved by O\u2019Callaghan and his nephew said she met friends and their children at the beach on that day. The children had a surf lesson, went with their mothers to a sauna and later for a swim.<\/p>\n

\u201cI nor anyone of us were out of our depth,\u201d the woman said. \u201cThe waves were choppy. It was a bright, sunny, windy day. The tide was a long way out. I was watching the kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

The woman said things changed suddenly and she knew they \u201cwere in trouble\u201d because of the current. <\/p>\n

She said Stephen O\u2019Callaghan heard her shouting and came to help. She told him she was worried about her 10-year-old, who was the farthest away and crying. <\/p>\n

\u201cStephen\u2019s brave actions saved his life. I was tiring and could not see everything that was happening around me,\u201d she said, adding that Eoghan O\u2019Callaghan brought her eight-year-old to safety. <\/p>\n

The woman told coroner Frank O\u2019Connell that Stephen and Eoghan O\u2019Callaghan were \u201cheroic\u201d and they would not have survived without their help. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere is not a day goes by that I don\u2019t think of Stephen and what happened that day. He will always be in my thoughts and prayers. I will be forever thankful to him,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

The Irish Coast Guard, and then the emergency services, arrived and started a search for Stephen O\u2019Callaghan soon afterwards. Garda Thomas Duane said Stephen was found face down in a gully, having been swept on to the rocks by a \u201cvery strong rip current\u201d. He said CPR was administered but O\u2019Callaghan was formally pronounced dead at 4.15pm.<\/p>\n

\"GardaGarda Thomas Duane with Stephen O’Callaghan’s brothers Emmet and Keith and father John outside Cork County Coroner’s Court in Midleton. Photograph: Olivia Kelleher <\/p>\n

He said the actions of the deceased and others prevented an even more serious tragedy from happening. He confirmed to the coroner that warning signs in relation to rip currents are on display at the beach. He noted that when a rip current occurs \u201cyou feel you are standing on nothing\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople don\u2019t understand how dangerous it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

A statement from Eoghan O\u2019Callaghan was read in to evidence. He said his uncle Stephen was an \u201camazing person\u201d who was \u201calways ready to help anyone\u201d.<\/p>\n

Paddy Enright, who operates a sauna at the beach, said Stephen O\u2019Callaghan \u201cdied a hero\u201d having \u201csacrificed his life to help others\u201d.<\/p>\n

The coroner said multiple deaths could have occurred on the day. \u201cIt\u2019s a terrible tragedy but it could have been a lot worse.\u201d<\/p>\n

Recording a verdict of accidental death, he said the quick thinking of Stephen O\u2019Callaghan and others prevented an even greater tragedy from occurring.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were heroes who saved lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaking after the inquest, Stephen\u2019s father, John O\u2019Callaghan, recalled his son saving two boys from the water in Rosscarbery on another occasion. <\/p>\n

Emmet O\u2019Callaghan said his brother Stephen was a person who instinctively went to the aid of others. He recalled an incident in Co Kerry where Stephen went into the sea to save a \u201ccouple of young people who were in trouble\u201d.<\/p>\n

The O\u2019Callaghan family said Stephen loved his work as an Irish Customs official and also had a passion for music and mountain climbing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A man \u201cdied a hero\u201d after rushing to help save six people who were struggling in a sudden…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":325467,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[46,61,60,43],"class_list":["post-325466","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-cork","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325466","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=325466"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325466\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/325467"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=325466"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=325466"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=325466"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}