Gardaí are trying to piece together the events that led to yesterday's fatal crash during a tourist excursion near Killarney in County Kerry.

A man and a woman from the US died when their pony and trap left the road near the Gap of Dunloe at around 2pm yesterday.

The victims were in their sixties, and on a holiday break in the area.

The driver of the carriage was treated at University Hospital Kerry in Tralee but later released.

Mayor of Killarney, Councillor Niall Kelleher, says it is a real tragedy.

“To have travelled across the world to go on a vacation with friends and with family; to have a loss of life in this regard is certainly the most tragic of incidences,” he said.

Garda forensic experts have carried out an examination of the scene.

They have also been talking to other tourists who were nearby when tragedy struck.

Mayor Kelleher is urging locals to help Gardaí piece together what happened.

“If there is anybody - not matter what sort of information, how small or trivial that people may think that it is; it is important that that information is brought to the gardaí.”

Junior Tourism Minister Brendan Griffen has offered his condolences to the families of the tourists who died in the accident.