The collapse of Thomas Cook was very sad news but not entirely unexpected as it was abundantly clear in recent days that the company was in a highly precarious position.
Efforts to secure a financial rescue deal over the weekend unfortunately came to naught and the announcement was made in the early hours of yesterday that the company had ceased trading.
The fact that one of the biggest names in the travel industry has gone out of business is a devastating blow to its 20,000 staff worldwide and is deeply worrying for the 150,000 tourists anxious about getting home from holiday resorts.
The collapse will have an impact on a further 800,000 customers who had planned trips and face cancelled bookings.
We have heard alarming accounts from people facing demands for payment from hotels which reportedly stopped Thomas Cook holidaymakers from leaving over the weekend.
Then there are the dream holidays and upcoming weddings which have been thrown into disarray, people not entirely sure what will happen next.
A repatriation operation on a scale never before seen in peacetime, has been launched to get people home over the next fortnight.
Among those affected are around 6,000 passengers who are due to be flown back to Belfast International Airport on twice daily flights.
There is no doubt the loss of Thomas Cook, with its long history and brand recognition, has sent shockwaves through the sector, leaving people wondering how it all went so badly wrong.
That analysis has already begun and while there have financial issues for some time, there is also a recognition that habits are changing and while a business based on the traditional high street shop worked well in the past, that model has been overtaken by people booking their own low cost flights, accommodation and car rental online.
Nevertheless, yesterday was a bleak day for the travel trade and for all those who relied on Thomas Cook for their livelihoods, among them more than 100 staff in Northern Ireland.
Every effort must be made to help workers find fresh employment while customers who have had their holidays ruined need to be given support, information and help in flying home, reorganising trips and getting their money back.
