Toddy Beaver, a 66-year-old part-time fisherman, shakes his head as he describes the increasing number of young people he has seen being lost to suicide.
"Suicide here is getting to be a regular occurrence," he says, indicating the River Slaney, which flows past his house. "I think people are living on their nerves, it's pressure. I'm in my 60s and I never knew what pressure. I see in my own children - they're under pressure from day one."
The deaths of Sharon Grace and her daughters, Mikahla (4) and Abby (3), who drowned just yards from where he moors his boat, are the latest in a number of "tragic sudden deaths" - as described by health authorities - in the last three days.
These deaths include a 75-year-old farmer outside Enniscorthy, a doctor in his 50s from outside Gorey, two secondary school students from Bunclody and New Ross, and a mother from the Gorey area.
"It's getting to the stage where it warrants some kind of investigation," says local TD Tony Dempsey, a former school principal. "We need to know what is happening, to identify if there are any trends, and then see what we can do about it.
"There is no question, we're all worried about it. No one knows when it's going to visit to their door. You worry for family and friends who have suffered the loss of a loved one by suicide. It's desperately upsetting and worrying for anyone affected."
Latest figures show 444 people died by suicide in Ireland 2003, 60 of whom were from the southeast. While the numbers are still relatively low in European terms, it is the rapid increase in suicide rates in young men that is causing alarm. Of the 60 people who took their lives in the southeast in 2003, 51 were men.
There is little indication of what caused the most recent surge in suspected suicides in Wexford, although the phenomenon of "copycat" suicides, or clusters, have been documented before by health professionals.
The last spate of suspected deaths by suicide occurred over a six-week period during November and December 2002 when 11 people lost their lives in the River Slaney over a six-week period. Seven of those deaths occurred over 12 days. A search of the waters continued for weeks afterwards.
Health services responded by contacting second-level schools in the county to see if they needed support, and distributed 4,000 wallet-sized cards with telephone numbers of support services available locally and nationally. Talks were also given to local community groups.
Yesterday, Seán McCarthy, a regional suicide resource officer for the Health Services Executive, said health authorities were responding once again to the rise in sudden tragic deaths in the area.
"We're aware that there have been a number of tragic deaths in the last 48 hours, one of which has received a major profile in the media.
"We're responding to tragic sudden deaths in the community by getting the information out there about what support services are available." Schools, GPs and families are being contacted to raise awareness of existing services, as well as access to special counselling and support.
"Communities that have been through a trauma often ask questions they want answered, so we've been setting up community meetings with local health services where people can get a response," says Mr McCarthy.
Ultimately, whatever about sudden surges in tragic deaths or suspected suicides, suicide is an issue being confronted by all communities. "A lot of work remains to be done," he says. "We need to break down the stigma of mental illness. . . if someone is having psychological problems, they need to be able to feel okay about going for help and support."
