A woman who was in a car with two children as it plunged into the River Lee in Cork last night has died.
The two children, thought to be aged just 10 and 11 years old, managed to escape the vehicle and started to swim to safety before being rescued from the water.
They were taken to Cork University Hospital where they remain, with non-life threatening injuries.
Eyewitnesses to the horrific incident say they could only watch as the car hurtled into the river, Cork Live reported.
They said two passengers, the children, were able to free themselves from the car as it sank deeper into the water and started to swim to safety.
The search continued into the night for the woman, in her 40s, who was believed to be trapped inside the vehicle when it plunged into Kennedy Quay at around 8.45pm on Friday.
The body of the woman was later removed from the water by the Irish Naval Services' dive team, and taken to Cork University Hospital.
The results of the post-mortem examination will determine the course of the Garda investigation into the incident.
A Garda spokeswoman said: "We are investigating all the circumstances of an incident where a vehicle entered the River Lee at Kennedy Quay, Cork City, at approximately 8:45pm on Friday, June 3, 2022.
"Two children were recovered from the water and are currently receiving treatment at Cork University Hospital for non-life threatening injuries."
This is not the first time such an incident has occurred on Cork quay in the last few years.
Both 2021 and 2020 saw similar incidents where a car was found to have drove into the water.
On both occasions a body was subsequently pulled from the water.