AN ELDERLY Co Clare woman may have died of hypothermia after she used water to put out flames when her clothes caught fire.
Gardai believe that when her clothes caught fire she went to a tap outside the house to put out the flames and collapsed.
A post mortem was held in Ennis yesterday on the woman, Ms Delia Cooney (88), Glandaree, Tulla, Co Clare, who was found dead on Sunday evening near her home where she lived alone. She did not have serious burns and it is understood that she may have suffered from hypothermia. Another elderly sister with whom she lived died a month ago.
Meanwhile, Wexford Fianna Fail TD, Mr John Browne, yesterday called on the Minister for Social Welfare to issue extra free fuel vouchers to the elderly and the sick.
"It is at times like this that the old and sick are particularly vulnerable to harsh weather conditions, and I believe the Minister should find some way of alleviating their suffering," he said.
A room temperature below 55 Fahrenheit is undesirable and the elderly are at risk if the temperature falls below 50, according to a leaflet on hypothermia issued by Dublin Corporation.
"Each winter a relative, a visitor or perhaps the public health nurse should put a thermometer in the sitting room or bedroom of the older person and ensure that the room temperature does not fall," it says.
"An older person may fight against a cold house or bedrooms for a day or so, but is likely to collapse with hypothermia if the cold continues," it says.