A total of 23 people lost their lives through drowning in Kerry over a five year period, from 2017 to 2021.
Sixteen of these were deemed accidental, while the remainder were classified as suicide or undetermined.
Figures released today in a new report from Water Safety Ireland, show an average of ten people die from drowning each month in Ireland.
Over the five-year period which the report covers, 588 people drowned, including 78 last year alone.
Kerry figures provided in the report show 2018 was a particularly bad year for people losing their lives in the water; seven people drowned in Kerry that year, compared to just one the year before.
The drownings recorded by Water Safety Ireland show just a quarter were swimming at the time, while 61 percent were engaged in land-based activities such as walking, hiking or angling.
Padraig Judge, Marketing Executive with Water Safety Ireland, warned people to never swim alone, never take alcohol prior to swimming, and to be aware of rip currents:
