PRAISE FOR SERVICES' HANDLING OF BLAST
Praise for services' handling of blast
By Steven McCaffery
BELFAST'S Royal Victoria Hospital is currently caring for the seven Omagh casualties that are still on the critical list.
Like Derry's Altnagelvin hospital, it fought to save those in need of specialist treatment in the aftermath of Saturday's devastating bomb blast.
The bomb destroyed one town, but countless lives. Many have already said the full impact of the bombers' work has yet to be felt.
At the Royal Victoria Hospital spokesman Gerry Carson agreed.
"The fallout from Omagh will be happening for years to come, for years to come..."
Less than three hours after disaster descended on Tyrone's county town, staff at the RVH had their emergency operation up and running.
"Unlike the other disaster scenes we would have seen before - we were some distance from Omagh. We were getting patients who were being stabilised in Omagh and brought here for major treatment," said Mr Carson.
"It meant that all the patients we received - and we received some 23 that particular night - were all in very serious conditions.
"The helicopters were literally landing on our carpark and going away and coming back again - probably carrying on average one seriously injured at a time."
The porters, to security staff, to medical teams all played a vital role, he said, in caring for the young and old suffering from shrapnel wounds, serious eye injuries, wounds to the limbs, head, burns...."
As four operating theatres worked "flat out" and the hospital battled through the night, the RVH was swamped with offers of help.
"We were inundated with people who wanted to give blood, people ringing to offer services as nurses, offering accommodation, meals, transport.
"Our social services now have lists of people who offered accommodation, transport and meals to relatives of the injured."
It was a scenario repeated throughout the medical centres that came to Omagh's aid. But all have since reserved special praise for the Tyrone County Hospital team that battled at the coal-face of misery the bomb blast unearthed.
As eyewitnesses recounted the sight of Market Street littered with limbs, it was the Tyrone County Hospital which was first port of call for those desperate for medical care.
This has thrown into sharp relief recent fears that the hospital could see its services chipped away.
But amid the chaos caused by the explosion, the staff at the County were faced with harrowing decisions. Staff Nurse Marion Skeath recalled just one.
"There was a lady. She had her family with her," she said yesterday, "there was nothing more could be done. She was dead. She was taken off her trolley and put on the floor, but the decision was made because someone who was living needed the trolley.
"It was an awful hard decision for anyone in our profession. But it had to be made and it had to be made quickly.
"Her son said to me - 'anywhere but on the floor..'. All we could do was make a make-shift stretcher with four small chairs and put her in a room...
"To me it was so much against everything that I trained for."
By Steven McCaffery
BELFAST'S Royal Victoria Hospital is currently caring for the seven Omagh casualties that are still on the critical list.
Like Derry's Altnagelvin hospital, it fought to save those in need of specialist treatment in the aftermath of Saturday's devastating bomb blast.
The bomb destroyed one town, but countless lives. Many have already said the full impact of the bombers' work has yet to be felt.
At the Royal Victoria Hospital spokesman Gerry Carson agreed.
"The fallout from Omagh will be happening for years to come, for years to come..."
Less than three hours after disaster descended on Tyrone's county town, staff at the RVH had their emergency operation up and running.
"Unlike the other disaster scenes we would have seen before - we were some distance from Omagh. We were getting patients who were being stabilised in Omagh and brought here for major treatment," said Mr Carson.
"It meant that all the patients we received - and we received some 23 that particular night - were all in very serious conditions.
"The helicopters were literally landing on our carpark and going away and coming back again - probably carrying on average one seriously injured at a time."
The porters, to security staff, to medical teams all played a vital role, he said, in caring for the young and old suffering from shrapnel wounds, serious eye injuries, wounds to the limbs, head, burns...."
As four operating theatres worked "flat out" and the hospital battled through the night, the RVH was swamped with offers of help.
"We were inundated with people who wanted to give blood, people ringing to offer services as nurses, offering accommodation, meals, transport.
"Our social services now have lists of people who offered accommodation, transport and meals to relatives of the injured."
It was a scenario repeated throughout the medical centres that came to Omagh's aid. But all have since reserved special praise for the Tyrone County Hospital team that battled at the coal-face of misery the bomb blast unearthed.
As eyewitnesses recounted the sight of Market Street littered with limbs, it was the Tyrone County Hospital which was first port of call for those desperate for medical care.
This has thrown into sharp relief recent fears that the hospital could see its services chipped away.
But amid the chaos caused by the explosion, the staff at the County were faced with harrowing decisions. Staff Nurse Marion Skeath recalled just one.
"There was a lady. She had her family with her," she said yesterday, "there was nothing more could be done. She was dead. She was taken off her trolley and put on the floor, but the decision was made because someone who was living needed the trolley.
"It was an awful hard decision for anyone in our profession. But it had to be made and it had to be made quickly.
"Her son said to me - 'anywhere but on the floor..'. All we could do was make a make-shift stretcher with four small chairs and put her in a room...
"To me it was so much against everything that I trained for."
Further Information
Publisher: THE IRISH NEWS
Ref: IN/0134
Published Date: 21-Aug-98
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