Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

On Friday, 7 October, an explosion tore through the heart of Creeslough. In an instant, the lives of ten people were snatched away and the lives of those left behind were changed utterly. On that terrible day, we lost James O'Flaherty, Jessica Gallagher, Martin McGill, Hugh Kelly, Martina Martin, Leona Harper, who was just 14, Robert Garwe, and his little daughter, Shauna Flanagan Garwe, Catherine O'Connell and her teenage son, James Monaghan.

For the families involved, such appalling loss is unfathomable and unimaginable. The grief and pain are still desperately raw. This week marked another difficult milestone for the families and friends of the victims as the months' mind masses got underway. The sorrow is absolutely palpable. The entire community has been impacted by this disaster. For such a small and close-knit area, the deaths of ten people in such a shocking incident will leave indelible scars. Everybody in the town knows those who died and those who were wounded. Every family is in some way touched by this appalling tragedy.

People across the country also got to know the victims. We know Robert and five-year-old Shauna, who had just started school a few short weeks before her death. They had stopped at the shop to buy a birthday cake. Leona, a talented rugby player, was looking forward to a sleepover that night and was in the shop to buy an ice cream. Martin, a devoted carer for his mother, was at the ATM to get money for a takeaway. Jessica, a talented young designer, was due to start a new job and an exciting new stage in her career a few short days after the explosion. The whole country was moved by the eulogy of 12-year-old Hamish O'Flaherty for his dad, James, who he described as a "great man". Hamish had sage advice for us all. He said we should be grateful for the families we have, and that we should cherish them and be grateful because, as he reminded us, they will not be here forever.

It is difficult in the wake of an event as appalling as this tragedy to find words that seem adequate to describe fully the intense heartbreak and incomprehension everyone feels. Perhaps the best description came from Creeslough's parish priest, Fr. John Joe Duffy. He said the community had been hit by what he referred to as "a tsunami of grief". The grief continues of course. It is immense, relentless and overpowering. In moments of deep despair, we can also look for signs of hope, a chink of light to illuminate the darkness. This light came in the form of the strength of the many members of the local community who worked tirelessly to save as many people as possible and to retrieve the remains of those who had died as swiftly as possible in the immediate aftermath of the explosion. We can also see light in the response of the members of the emergency services, who acted with such diligence and sensitivity at such an unspeakably awful time. We see light as well in the work of our healthcare workers, who treated the injured with such care and kindness and who continue to do so.

Now, we must ensure that those who are wounded, bereaved and otherwise impacted by this terrible tragedy continue to receive the support they so desperately need. This support must be offered to those caught up in this devastating incident and living not only in Creeslough but also in Letterkenny, Dunfanaghy and other surrounding areas. Local schools dealing with the grief of students who lost classmates and parents also require long-term and ongoing support. This support must be available and there must be no question of this. It must include intensive mental health services and counselling. There can be no question of this support being withdrawn before the need for it ends. This support must be made available and continue to be made available.

My thoughts and sympathies and those of all Social Democrats members are with the community of Creeslough and surrounding areas and those who have worked and will continue to work over the coming weeks and months to support them through this desperately dark period.

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