According to emerging reports this afternoon, Gardai are treating the death of a middle-aged man in a Dublin canal in the early hours of this morning as a 'tragic accident'.

It is understood that the man got into difficulty at the Ninth Lock in Clondalkin at approximately 3am this morning.

Reports confirm that members of the force, who were in the vicinity, spotted the man and entered the water in an attempt to save him.

Emergency services descended upon the scene, and the man, believed to be in his fifties, was pulled unconscious from the water.

After being rushed to Tallaght Hospital, the man, who is understood to have been socialising in Ballyfermot prior to the morning's tragedy, was pronounced dead at 4am.

The Gardaí are currently compiling a report into the incident which will be presented to the Dublin Coroner's Office.