Jarvey leaped from the trap moments before fatal cliff plunge

THE PONY MAN at the centre of Monday’s tragedy narrowly escaped death, it emerged last night. Moments after his animal became startled, it turned round sharply and backed off the road.

Attempts to calm the animal failed and the driver was forced to jump off the trap seconds before it hurtled 20 feet down a rocky ravine and smashed into rocks.

Both Joy Few, 64, and her partner Normand Larose, 62, were flung onto rocks as the cart careered down the ravine, dragging the pony backwards as it descended.

The pony was severely injured and was later put down.

Kerry Mountain Rescue was called in to assist in the recovery of the bodies of the couple, who were later taken by hearse to University Hospital Kerry, where postmortems will be undertaken.

The accident happened so fast that there does not appear to have been much time to react.

The pony man was hospitalised for an arm injury but he has since been released.

He is said to be ‘deeply traumatised’ by what happened.

His sister was among local business people, residents and tourists who attended an open-air prayer service at Kate Kearney’s Cottage – where the US tourists had been heading before tragedy struck.

The party of six are said to have travelled from Killarney to Ross Castle on the edge of Lough Leane before boarding a boat past Muckross Lake and into Killarney National Park through Upper Lake.

The couple then made their way to a 19thcentury hunting lodge known as Lord Brandon’s Cottage before setting off down the 11km winding road through the Gap of Dunloe to Kate Kearney’s Cottage. The accident is believed to have happened just ahead of an old stone bridge, known as the Wishing Bridge, and about two miles from the cottage itself.

A horse nearly pulled three American tourists over the edge to their deaths last May when it was startled by something, causing the animal to back its carriage towards the edge of a cliff.

The jarvey in charge of their carriage managed to stop the animal from pushing the carriage over and the tourists escaped with minor injuries.