Tributes have been paid to a Beara fisherman who died after his boat sank off the coast.

Michael Harrington, who was in his 50s and from Cahermore, Beara, was fishing for pollock near Black Ball Head on Monday evening when his small vessel got into difficulty.

The Castletownbere RNLI lifeboat was launched at about 7.20am on Wednesday after a member of the public raised the alarm.

A Coast Guard helicopter from Shannon and several local fishing boats also joined the search.

His body was recovered from the water at around 8.20am and brought to Cork University Hospital mortuary.

The coroner has been notified and an inquest will be held.

Paul Stevens, Lifeboat Operations Manager at Castletownbere RNLI, said: 'Sudden tragedies like this have a huge impact on a small fishing community and our thoughts are with his family at this very sad time.'

Independent Cllr Finbarr Harrington said it was a sad day for Beara: 'Michael was a really nice guy and was fishing all his life as was his father. The community is in shock and I'd like to offer my condolences to his family, friends and the wider community.'

An entry on rip.ie said he was deeply mourned by his parents Jerome and Anne, his sisters Ann Marie, Kathleen, Maureen and Helen, his brothers-in-law Martin and Daniel, sister-in-law Debbie, nieces, nephews, relatives, neighbours and friends.

Gardaí said investigations are ongoing.