A postmortem is to be carried out today on a young mother and her daughter following the discovery of their bodies in Letterkenny, Co Donegal, yesterday afternoon.
The bodies of Caitríona Innes (26) and her daughter Katelyn (7) were discovered in their home at Whitethorn Close, in Gortlee, Letterkenny, shortly after 3pm.
The Garda Press Office said: "At this stage of the investigation there are no signs of any foul play."
Gardaí were called to the semi-detached house after the alarm was raised by a neighbour who became concerned that the mother and daughter had not been seen since Sunday afternoon.
Suspicions were also aroused when Katelyn did not catch her school bus on Monday or yesterday. A pupil at Scoil Mhuire Gan Smál National School, she had made her first Holy Communion last Saturday at St Eunan's Cathedral in Letterkenny.
Local outgoing TD Dr Jim McDaid formally pronounced Ms Innes and her daughter dead at the scene yesterday afternoon.
Assistant State Pathologist Dr Michael Curtis carried out a preliminary postmortem on the two bodies at the scene last night and a full postmortem is to be be carried out at Letterkenny General Hospital today.
Ms Innes, a single mother, was originally from Drumacrin Avenue, Bundoran, Co Donegal, and had lived in Letterkenny for four years. She was working at McNutts knitwear store in Downings since moving from Bundoran.
The second-eldest of six children, four girls and two boys, she was the daughter of Greg and Winnie Innes.
Neighbours of the family in Bundoran said Ms Innes was seen with her little girl at a funfair in the town over the weekend.
Gardaí in Letterkenny are investigating the deaths and say they will not be making any comment until the results of the postmortems are known.
Local parish priest Fr Brian Quinn said the deaths were terribly shocking. "It is difficult to take in," he added. "For those of us who attended the scene, the news is only beginning to dawn, the shock will become more heightened as the day goes by."
He added that arrangements were being put in place to help Katelyn's schoolmates deal with the news of her death in school today.
A spokeswoman for the HSE said it was in touch with gardaí yesterday evening and was offering counselling and support services to family and friends of the pair.
The tragedy comes just three weeks after the four members of the Dunne family were found dead in their home in Wexford.
Locals shocked at deaths of mother and daughter: page 3