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Nation in mourning
13.07.10
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by Linda McGrory
LIKE nearly every young man in Ireland on Sunday
evening, pals Mark McLaughlin,
Paul Doherty,
Ciaran
Sweeney, P.J. McLaughlin,
James McEleney,
Eamonn
McDaid and Damien McLaughlin, went out to the pub to
watch the World Cup final. |
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Lucky enough to be in
work in a peninsula where one-third of the workforce
is unemployed, they would struggle with tiredness
the next day because, the World Cup, after all, only
happens every four years. Sadly, the seven young
friends would not make it home. After watching the
Netherlands V Spain showdown in a Clonmany pub, they
all piled into a black Volkswagen Passat in Clonmany
village to head for the peninsula's biggest town,
Buncrana. A couple of them left their own cars in
the village, to collect the following day.
Scores of young people were already spilling out of
the pubs in Buncrana, enjoying the craic chanting
Ole, Ole, Ole and deciding where they would finish
up their night.
One young woman, who knew all the victims, was in
Buncrana with her boyfriend when the revellery was
suddenly interrupted by the sirens of fire brigades,
ambulances and gardai rushing through the town
shortly before 11am.
"We all knew there must have been an accident but we
didn't know how bad. Some of the cars followed the
fire brigade to see what had happened.
"As the night went on, we heard a couple of people
had died but then the news came through that it was
up to eight.
"Everyone was on their mobiles all night. I didn't
sleep a wink and calls and texts were coming in all
night," she sobbed, not wishing to be named.
"I knew most of those fellas and they were just
lovely. They were very decent fellas and were very
hard working."
The last round of CSO figures showed that 5,149
people are unemployed in Inishowen out of a
population of around 30,000 and a workforce of
around 15,000.
Unusually for their age group, it appears all of the
seven victims were in work ranging from butcher's
assistant, lorry driver to construction while some
helped out their fathers in small local businesses
including garages and haulage.
Inishowen is often referred to as 'Ireland in
miniature'. As the first of the eight remains began
to be removed from Letterkenny morgue to each
devastated home, dusk fell too on a nation in
mourning. |
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