Woman who died in horse riding accident in Glenamaddy is named

A woman who died in a horse riding accident in County Galway on Thursday has been named locally as Heather Hewitt.

Ms Hewitt lived in Knockanarra, Williamstown and is formerly of Crowborough, East Sussex, England.

It is understood the incident at Glenamaddy Equestrian Centre occurred when a horse was being mounted.

The woman was riding with a local equestrian club at the time.

Emergency services were called to the scene, but the woman was pronounced dead a short time later and her body transferred to University Hospital Galway for a postmortem examination.

It is understood that a member of the Health and Safety Authority has visited the scene.

It is being treated as a tragic accident.

Ms Hewitt, who was in her 40s, was the treasurer of the Glenway Riding Club who are based at the Glenamaddy Equestrian Centre.

She is survived by her husband Kieran, daughter Beth, parents Clive and Tracy, sister Andrea, stepchildren Conor, Jack and Millie, and extended family and friends.

Tributes have been paid to Ms Hewitt this morning with the Association of Irish Riding Clubs Western Region who said that they were shocked and saddened on hearing of the untimely death of the Glenway Riding Club member.

Her funeral will take place at a later date in the UK with her family thanking all those who helped following the incident and also for their kindness and support at this time.