Government ministers were among the large attendances at the funerals yesterday of the two gardai killed when their patrol car was involved in a road accident in Cork on Sunday morning.
Garda Seamus McIntyre's funeral took place in Kenmare, Co Kerry, while Garda George Rice's funeral was in Matehy, near Blarney, Co Cork.
In Holy Cross Church in Kenmare, Garda McIntyre's fiancee, Garda Clare Corcoran, read a short prayer.
Both funerals were attended by the Minister for Justice, Mr O'Donoghue, and the Minister for Health, Mr Martin. The Garda Commissioner, Mr Pat Byrne, also attended both funerals. The President, Mrs McAleese, was represented at both by her aide-de-camp, Cmmdt Mairin McEnery, and the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, by Capt Ger O'Grady.
A former teacher and family friend, Father Jim Kennelly, said Garda McIntyre (25) had been "one of hurling's brightest stars". He could take his place on any team. He had captained the school football team at St Brendan's College, Killarney where he had been a boarder and was prefect in his senior year, loved by all his charges.
Father Kennelly also paid tribute to the gardai. "Only on days like today do we stop and think of the service of the gardai. They too are the sons and daughters of our neighbours."
They were not just men and women in uniform, he said "but human and vulnerable like the rest of us. They have a task that is increasingly more difficult and dangerous."
Ballincolllig GAA club in Cork and Kenmare GAA provided guards of honour at the removal on Tuesday night when the queue of mourners took five hours to file past the remains at the funeral home. Up to 500 gardai in uniform, along with members of the force in plain clothes, marched behind and in front of the hearse through the streets of Kenmare.
In Matehy, more than 3,000 mourners gathered at St Joseph's Church to attend the funeral Mass for Garda Rice (45).
Father Colman O'Donovan, who acted as joint celebrant for the Mass, said the death of Garda Rice had "shocked and numbed the entire community to which George had been a good friend and neighbour."
He said the people of the local community had been of tremendous support to the family of Garda Rice in the wake of the tragedy.
"The people here are renowned for their community spirit and they have really shown it this week in rallying around George's family."
The chief mourners included Garda Rice's widow, Eilish, and the couple's three children - Laura (14), Elaine (12) and Kieran (8). Garda Rice is also survived by his father, Dick, four brothers and two sisters.
Garda Rice's colleagues formed a guard of honour as his coffin was brought from the church for burial in St Colman's cemetery, Macroom, Co Cork.
A large contingent of gardai from Cork and Kerry attended the Mass including Supt Martin Shanahan, who is leading the inquiry into the road accident.
Garda Rice was honoured by the Cork Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals last December for his dedication in dealing with cases of animal abuse. A native of Kilgarvan, Co Kerry, he had been a garda for over 20 years and had spent much of his career in Cork.