A Co Laois man and his 10-year-old son have died in a crash while holidaying in Turkey.
Eoin Fitzpatrick, a 36-year-old father of two, and his youngest son Dylan, died after a moped they were travelling on was involved in a collision with a bus during a family holiday.
Originally from Mountmellick, Co Laois, Mr Fitzpatrick and his younger son were involved in the collision at about 3.30pm local time Monday in the tourist town of Alanya.
He had been on a holiday in Turkey with his son Dylan and his other son, Cian, who is 16 years old.
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Mr Fitzpatrick had worked as a manager in a local car parts shop in Portarlington.
Peadar Foster, a co-worker at Portarlington Auto Parts, described Mr Fitzpatrick as the “life and soul” of the business. “I worked with him for about four years, lovely, beautiful chap,” he said.
He said the father was a “brilliant” and “hard working” man.
“He’s known wide and far here, we’re very fond of him . . . I can’t say enough about him,” Mr Foster told The Irish Times.
News of the tragic death of the father and son was “very depressing” and had hit the local community hard, he said. The car parts shop had been fielding calls from people expressing condolences all day, he said.
“It’s very very sad,” he added.
Mr Fitzpatrick had been working in Portarlington for more than a decade, his colleague said.
“He was always talking about his kids,” he said.
His father, Frank Fitzpatrick, had owned a garage and car dealership in Mountmellick.
The local community would rally to support the Fitzpatrick family following the “awful tragedy”, Laois TD Brian Stanley said.
It was his understanding that Mr Fitzpatrick and his son were running some last-minute errands before their return to Ireland when they were involved in the crash on a moped.
There had been “shock and devastation” when news began to trickle in about the crash on Monday evening, added the Sinn Féin TD, who is a neighbour of the family.
The father and son had been on holidays with another son (16) and friends. The mother of the children is travelling to Turkey, he said. It was his understanding Turkish police alerted the other family members and friends at the resort where they were staying.
Mr Stanley extended his sympathies to the family and to both sets of grandparents, all of whom he knows.
“The community here in Portlaoise will rally around both families,” he said.
The Department of Foreign Affairs said it was aware of the case and is providing consular assistance.
