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ONE OF THE first gardaí on the scene of the Buncrana Pier tragedy in Co Donegal has told how he had to get down on his knees to stop himself slipping because of the thick algae.
At the inquest into the five deceased today, Garda Seamus Callaghan of Buncrana Garda station described a devastating scene when he arrived on the shores of Lough Swilly on 20 March 2016.
Five members of the same family perished in the tragedy including Sean McGrotty, his sons Mark, 11, and eight-year-old Evan, his mother-in-law Ruth Daniels and her teenage daughter Jodie-Lee Tracey.
Callaghan told how when he arrived he saw a woman being given CPR.
He went down the slipway to assist but revealed “I had to get down on my knees to assist because it was just so slippy.”
The area was then sealed off and the pier was cleared to give the deceased some dignity, he added.
He then recalled how he stood and watched as the bodies of the remaining people in the jeep were taken ashore.
“Four more persons were taken from the water and blankets were placed over the bodies. Prayers were said over each of the bodies and a priest blessed the bodies,” he said.
He said he also noticed a woman nursing a baby in a car, a woman he later found out was Stephanie Knox, the girlfriend of Davitt Walsh.
Callaghan added that he also noticed empty baby milk bottles and food cartons as well as a baby bag.
“It was clear that the baby had been very well looked after,” he said.
The inquest at the Lake of Shadows Hotel in Buncrana is expected to conclude today.
Another of today’s witnesses was also one of the first on the scene.
John O’Raw, a computer science lecturer at LYIT and an RNLI volunteer who has been snorkelling for 40 years, told the coroner’s court how he tried to open the doors of the black Audi Q7 jeep after it had slipped off Buncrana Pier.
There was complete silence in the room as he recalled being the first to reach the ill-fated jeep which he estimated was three metres deep.
But he revealed, “I was unable to open the doors. The door handles were giving freely but not engaging with the locking mechanism.”
Dressed in his diving gear, with a body weight and fins on his feet and using a snorkel, O’Raw went about his investigation of the jeep.
Two other personnel were standing on the roof of the vehicle. He said the tailgate of the vehicle was open and that the driver’s window was partially smashed and inverted inwards.
O’Raw had earlier told how his RNLI pager went off at his home at 7.13pm.
He immediately rushed to the pier and was met by colleague Emmet Johnston, briefed on the situation and then he returned home to get his snorkelling gear.
He entered the water at 7.55pm to carry out his investigation which was about 40 minutes after the car first became submerged.
When cross-examined, O’Raw said he was aware of other situations on Buncrana Pier involving vehicles entering the water.
“I’m personally aware of three other incidents which have occurred there in past 17 years,” he said.
It was put to the RNLI rescuer that with the timelapse, it was a recovery mission when he entered the water to investigate the vehicle.
He said, “It’s a rescue mission until the doctor pronounces… we would always see it as an opportunity (to save someone).”
Coroner Dr Denis McCauley paid tribute on a personal level to O’Raw for his actions on the day and to his colleagues also.
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I will miss Melissa more than Sean
@CKC: she die?
@Quentin Moriarty: No
@Quentin Moriarty: she had one party trick …
@Greg Blake: was that the brilliant bridesmaids part?
He’s on his way out and still continues to lie.
He should team up with Chemical Ali and do a corporate lectures tour on defending the indefensible
I struggle to think of many people more odious and smug than Hannity.
@The Guru: one of the few faces that trigger my urge to punch it repeatedly until that smug look is knocked off.
“he’s an unbelievably gracious person”. “He’s always thinking of others”.
Are you sure you know who the current president even is?
His comedic interventions will be missed. Luckily with have Kelly-Anne (aka meth Barbie) to keep us enterained
Think Sarah Huckabee will be better taking on the hostile media as press spokesperson …How long more can they ask 70% of their questions on Russia….
@John003: as long as it takes.
@Deborah Behan: Or their rating do down….Whichever is first….
@John003: maybe, just maybe if they got an answer that wasn’t proven to be untrue they’d stop asking the same question. Think about it, every answer on Russia has changed repeatedly. “do you think Russia interfered in the election?” alternating “no” “yes” “maybe” “no” “with others” “Putin says no”. Another great example is Don Jr changing his story about the meeting with what he was told was a Kremlin lawyer on a daily basis which has now changed to him not talking anymore after it was revealed that there were up to 8 people in the meeting contrary to his statements saying there were 4. If they consistently gave the same answer there would be no need for clarification
@Paul Quirke: Ha ha. I call her Goebbels Barbie!
He forget the second C in cooks… just before the k there….
@Brian Guilfoyle: good one Brian.
@Brian Guilfoyle: coocks?
Fox News talking about media bias. Does it get any more surreal?
Too many Cooks and no ingredients,and no recipe,Lurching from one policy and legislative failure to another ,mired in intrigue with dubious people,let’s welcome him to Ireland he’ll fit right in
Not a shred of evidence to prove what psycho Trump and Spicer says is fake news.
@JimmyMc: One story means all media systematically makes up facts? Fox News is the real perpetrator of fake news.
@JimmyMc: one story where people had to resign and the victim of the story himself said “everyone makes mistakes” as he was graciously accepting their apology.
For a second there I was astounded- I thought it read ‘crooks’. Now that would have been a popcorn munching story!
Ill miss her. Such entertainment.
What a clown of a man still spewing out bulls#1t about fake media. I’d rather fake media any day over a nutcase president
Too many crooks more like…
think he meant too many crooks..
What else do you expect from liars and conmen, you’d hardly expect them to say they’re honest and provide real facts 99% of the time. When you’ve got idiots, stupid enough to vote for you and think you’re a God. You’re going to milk it, for what it’s worth and laugh at your supporters behind their backs.
Too many crooks or cooks?
have your say