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“Death wish” workies filmed standing on two ladder, balanced on cherry picker fixing church roof

“DEATH WISH” workmen have been filmed standing on two ladders, balanced on a cherry picker, with no safety helmets on while repairing a church roof.

The two men were captured making repairs to St John’s Parish Church in Tralee, County Kerry, on Saturday after the building was damaged by Storm Barra.

A nail-biting video shows one workman, believed to be a steeplejack, straddling his two legs between two fully extended ladders that are placed on top of a cherry picker.


His colleague, wearing a high-vis jacket, can be seen standing at the base of the ladders and watching on.

The ladders have been placed against the slanted roof of the church which is around 200ft high as the men get to work with repairs on the building.

The man on the roof does not appear to be wearing any safety equipment, including a hard hat, as he carries on work.

The person filming the clip can be heard saying “oh my god” as they watch on in horror.

At one point, the man reaches over to start fixing another part of the roof and leans heavily on one of the ladders, while leaving his right leg hovering over the other.

Another clip then shows the other man, wearing the high-vis jacket, joining him as they take on a ladder each.

The workman stands between two ladders
One workman stands between two ladders while he fixes the roof.

A shocked onlooker shared the video onto Reddit on Monday, writing: “My god does this man have a death wish.”

One Reddit user commented: “That’s a very serious incident if he fell off and died.

“The other fella would be in court, possibly to jail.”

Another said: “If he’s not careful, that ladder will be his… stairway to heaven.”

And one viewer added: “That’s just a steeplejack. They are lunatics.”

Jimmy Briens Bar also shared a clip of the scenes on Facebook on Monday, writing: “They won’t have far to go for the funeral.”

The post has received over 400 likes, over 200 comments and almost 100,000 views.

Both workmen stand on each ladder
Both workmen up on the dangerous ladders as they work on the roof.

The clip received a mixed reaction online, with some viewers joking about the risky workers and others slamming them for their disregard for safety.

Declan Slattery said: “They will be grand, they have God on their side.”

Dec Ruane said: “One step wrong they’ll be having their own funeral.”

Peter Doddy said: “For f**k sake, Jesus, how f***ing insane is that.”

James Addison said: “I bet the Health and Safety will be s***ing themselves at this.”

Robert O’Neill said: “Not worth the risk, should use the right equipment.”

A spokesperson for St John’s Parish Church today (WED) declined to comment on the footage and public reaction.

Storm Barra caused havoc in Ireland last week, leaving approximately 30,000 homes without electricity as severe arctic winds, rain and snow battered the country. 

In some parts of southern and western Ireland, winds of up to and over 80mph were recorded. 

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