Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)

I am taking this matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy Brian Lenihan, who unfortunately, due to other business, cannot be here this evening. The matter raised by Senator Ó Domhnaill concerns a tragic incident which occurred almost 65 years ago. I will briefly give the details of the tragedy as they appear in the documentation file in the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

On 10 May 1943, a report was made to the Garda Síochána at Annagry, County Donegal, at 6.45 p.m. that an object, believed to be a mine, was floating in the sea between Mullaghdearg Point and Broad Strand. The Garda reported the matter to the lieutenant in the local marine service who went to Ballymanus Strand shortly afterwards. The mine was more than a mile off shore at this time.

The lieutenant warned a group of men present on the strand to stay away. He waited there for more than two hours until the mine came ashore and again warned those present to stay away from it. It appears from the report that some of the people he spoke to reacted negatively to his warnings. The reports say it appears that when the lieutenant left the site at 9.50 p.m. to report the matter to his ordnance officer, some of the men present on the strand immediately proceeded to haul the mine ashore with ropes and some attempted to unscrew portions of it. The explosion occurred at 10 p.m., killing 17 men at the scene and another man died in hospital the following day. Five others were injured.

This was a terrible tragedy. A sad fact to note is that three sons of one family were lost in the explosion and three other families lost two sons each. The grief that overcame those families must have been unbearable. Those who died ranged in age from 13 years to 34 years, eight of whom were under the age of 18 years.

With the forthcoming 65th anniversary, I can understand the enduring sadness which must still stir in the families of those who were killed and injured. As well as the suffering of the families involved this was a terrible event for the local community and the grief was shared by the country as a whole.

At the request of my colleague, the Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children, Deputy Pat The Cope Gallagher, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy Brian Lenihan, recently asked his officials to examine the file on this matter and the details which I have outlined were obtained from it. The file had previously been available to the public in the National Archives.

The file shows that an inquest was held the day after the event. Consideration was given at the time to holding an inquiry into the matter. It seems from the file that there was little local demand for such an inquiry at the time. In fact, it was noted that a number of local representatives were of the view that nothing would be gained from one. A meeting of local clergy apparently also came to the same conclusion. A report on file states that a meeting of the next-of-kin of the deceased was held on 24 May and that they decided unanimously that no demand be made for an inquiry. The Departments of Defence and Justice also came to the conclusion that an inquiry would not serve any useful purpose. The coroner was informed that no official inquiry was proposed and the inquest was reconvened on 28 May.

The verdict of the inquest was that the deaths were caused by the explosion of the mine and the jury added riders to their verdict which stated that the disaster could have been avoided if the Garda sergeant at Annagry had cordoned off the area in the immediate vicinity of the mine until the arrival of the military. There was disagreement in the jury as to whether the lieutenant of the coast watching service was negligent and it was the jury's opinion that the military authorities should be asked to establish a coast watching post in the vicinity of Ballymanus.

A report on file from the Garda superintendent in the area states that the sergeant involved had failed to go to the scene before the explosion and that no attempt was made by him to cordon off the area. It appears this had become the occasion of bad feeling in the district. What happened was an appalling tragedy. However, it is questionable at this distance from the tragic event whether it is possible to pass judgment on the actions of the individuals or organisations involved. Few of those involved directly are still alive to defend or explain themselves and those who are would have distant memories of what occurred. It is difficult to see how any further investigation of the matter would add anything to what was found at the time.

The file on this issue will shortly be available again in the National Archives and I hope its contents may help the families of those involved to understand what happened and to come to terms with their grievous loss. This event will be of wider interest to social historians, who may ultimately form their own judgments on the terrible day 65 years ago.

I wish to conclude by expressing my sorrow at what happened and extending my sympathies and those of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy Brian Lenihan, to the families who continue to mourn their loved ones who were lost or badly injured in this tragic event. I will bring the contents of Senator Ó Domhnaill's contribution to the personal attention of the Minister, Deputy Brian Lenihan.