Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

The tragic loss of so many lives in Creeslough has cast a long dark shadow across the country. The entire nation was impacted with a sense of shock and grief. On Friday, 7 October, an explosion tore through the heart of this little town. For a small and close knit community like Creeslough, the deaths of ten people in such a devastating and inexplicable incident is a terrible burden to bear. The sheer randomness of the event makes it even harder to process. Everybody in this small town knows those who died. Every family is in some way touched by this appalling tragedy. People across the country have also got to know the victims, whose lives were cruelly snatched away.

Jessica Gallagher was supposed to start a new job as a designer in Belfast yesterday. She was about to embark on an exciting stage in her career; instead, she is being buried today. The funeral of Martin McGill, who was such a devoted carer to his mother, is also taking place today. In the course of the coming week, the country will be enveloped in a dense fog of sorrow as all ten victims - seven adults and three children - are laid to rest.

It is difficult at a time like this to find words that seem adequate to fully describe the intense heartbreak and incomprehension we all feel. There is no doubt the grief being experienced in Creeslough is immense, relentless and overpowering. In moments of deep despair, however, we can also see signs of hope, a chink of light to illuminate the darkness. That light came in the form of the many members of the community who worked tirelessly throughout the day and the night to save as many lives as possible and to retrieve the remains of those who had died. We also see a light in the response of the emergency services on both sides of the Border, who acted with such diligence, care and sensitivity at such an unspeakably awful time. We also hope those who were injured will recover from their wounds, and we think of the staff who are caring for them. My thoughts and sympathies and those of the wider Social Democrats are with the community of Creeslough and those who have worked and will work over the coming weeks and months to support them through this very dark time.

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