Roz Purcell makes an emotional statement after the “horrific” loss of a beloved family member and urges fans to call their loved ones

ROZ Purcell has spoken out after the tragic loss of her beloved aunt – saying it was “truly terrible”.

The RTE 2FM presenter told how her family were devastated after the death of her aunt Mary.

2

2

The 33-year-old said she has no desire to return to social media just yet, but is aware that her latest book will be released soon.

The star previously told fans she would be missing from the weekend radio show she co-hosted with Emma Power last weekend.

The hiking influencer, whose new book The Hike Life: My 50 Favorite Hikes in Ireland is released on October 12, said her aunt Mary was “a real core part” of the family and her loss was “really terrible”.

Tipperary native Roz explained her absence on social media, telling fans: “Last week and this weekend have been a terrible time for our family as we lost our Aunty Mary and I’m sure a lot of people who did see that, have an aunt close by.”

She added: “She was just a core part of our family, so it’s just terrible.”

Roz said: “I don’t feel like posting anything this week, but I’m very aware that there’s a book coming out so I’ll definitely have to do it then.”

And Roz had some advice for his followers, urging them to pick up the phone and reach out to their older loved ones.

She continued, “So I still came here tonight to tell you to call your elderly relatives, right?”

“It’s not even late yet, they’ll still be up there.

“Call your parents, your grandparents, your aunts, whoever it is, call them.”

The model stressed the importance of staying in touch with relatives and also urged her fans to put their phones away when visiting her.

She said, “You know how it is, sometimes you think, ‘I’ll go and see her this weekend,’ and the weekend comes and you think, ‘I’ll go next weekend, but do it this weekend.’

“And put your phone down when you’re with them and that’s all I have to say.”

She added: “If you don’t, I’ll be mad at you now! Put down the phone and remember that you will never regret a visit. Don’t put it off.”

Last month, Roz burst into tears when she got her hands on a copy of her new book for the first time.

Roz was overcome with emotion as she told her fans: “Okay – take 101. I’m not going to cry. The Hike Life book is finally here. The first physical copy.”

“I worked on this book for two and a half years and edited it online for a whole year.

“I put so much into it. This arrived yesterday and I was so nervous, excited and emotional when I opened it.”

“So we will open it together. I’m just going to rip it all the way open.”

When the 33-year-old saw the book for the first time, she burst into tears and said: “I’m definitely going to cry,” before turning off the camera.

She came back to present her stunning publication and said, “Okay, I’ll pull myself together. So here it is, the very first physical copy. It is so beautiful.”

The former Miss Universe Ireland earlier this year announced her engagement to her longtime partner Zach Desmond.