HUNDREDS BRAVE TORRENTIAL RAIN TO REMEMBER THE DEAD
Hundreds brave torrential rain to remember the dead
By Claire Simpson
ON AUGUST 15 1998 29 people, including a mother and her unborn twins, were killed when a Real IRA bomb exploded in the heart of Omagh.
Ten years to the day survivors, families of the victims, well wishers and politicians travelled to the Co Tyrone market town yesterday to remember the dead.
Shops and offices closed for the afternoon as people waited for a memorial service organised by Omagh District Council to begin.
By 3pm hundreds of people had gathered in torrential rain beside the 'Garden of Light' memorial on Drumragh Avenue to watch the service.
Others congregated at the site of the bomb in Market Street where a glass obelisk was due to be unveiled.
Victims' families who had chosen to attend the service sat in front of a small stage beside politicians, including Taoiseach Brian Cowen, Secretary of State Shaun Woodward, Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, and DUP junior minister Jeffrey Donaldson.
Representatives from the four main Churches, including co-chairs of the Omagh Churches Forum Monsignor Joe Donnelly and Rev William Seale, sat on the stage along with former Beirut hostage and Church of England envoy Terry Waite.
Crowds standing on the bridge beside the memorial garden watched the service on a big screen as members of the Omagh Waterford Peace Choir sang the first hymn.
A little girl in a raincoat was hoisted on to her father's shoulders but quickly jumped under the cover of a large umbrella as the heavens opened.
Daniel McSorley, chief executive of Omagh District Council, read an extract from the Omagh memorial narrative while Sinead McLaughlin from Buncrana and Paula Helguero Mahon from Madrid read out greetings in memory of victims from Donegal and Spain who lost their lives in the tragedy.
At 3.03pm a prayer was read by members of the Omagh Churches Forum John Murdock, from the First Omagh Presbyterian, Sam McGuffin, representing Omagh Methodist Church and Brendan McCarthy, from Omagh Community Church.
At 3.10pm, the time that the bomb exploded, members of the crowd bowed their heads during a minute's silence, ended by the ringing of a single church bell.
Omagh native Ronnie Moran's voice cracked as he read John Hewitt's poem Neither an Elegy nor a Manifesto.
The final line of the poem 'Bear in mind these dead' was read in Irish by John McLaughlin from Buncrana, whose 12-year-old son Sean died, and in Spanish by Ana Abad, the sister of 23-year-old victim Rocio Abad Ramos.
Caroline Martin, whose sister Esther Gibson died, repeated the line in English.
The crowd fell silent as the Duchess of Abercorn read out names of those who lost their lives.
A reading from the Book of Ecclesiastes and a hymn sung by Omagh Waterford peace choir followed.
Mr Waite then spoke. The former Church envoy acknowledged that no-one has ever been convicted in connection with the atrocity.
"We know that in a flawed and broken world complete justice is hardly ever experienced," he said.
He acknowledged that plans to commemorate the bombing have divided some of the families of the victims.
"There can be support groups and understanding helpers and criminal trials," he said.
"But at root the individual has to face the wounds that has been inflicted on them. It is not for anyone to judge how the other responds to suffering."
The choir sang another hymn, Let there be Peace on Earth, followed by a reading from St Matthew.
A piece written by a mother who lost her child in the Omagh bombing was also read.
"It can be painful to face the facts of our experience and the crisis it has created, yet this is the first step to becoming whole again," she said.
"At such times, when we reach deep within ourselves, we will find hidden strengths, courage and hope, which we never knew existed."
Eyes turned to a big screen as a camera focused on Market Street where piper Drew McDermott played a lament, while children scattered petals around the bomb site.
The bagpipe lament was echoed by a female uilleann piper at the memorial service.
Chairman of Omagh council, Sinn Fein councillor Martin McColgan, then officially opened the 'Garden of Light' while chairman of the Omagh Fund, Sean O'Dwyer, turned on a mirror in the garden which tracks the sun, known as a heliostat.
The service ended with a prayer and the hymn Be Thou My Vision before politicians and victims' families laid wreaths in the memorial garden.
Many hurried away as the politicians were whisked away in their cars as the rain grew heavier.
However, others-stayed to watch as members of the victims' families walked through the small garden, some tracing the wording of the memorial with their hands.
By Claire Simpson
ON AUGUST 15 1998 29 people, including a mother and her unborn twins, were killed when a Real IRA bomb exploded in the heart of Omagh.
Ten years to the day survivors, families of the victims, well wishers and politicians travelled to the Co Tyrone market town yesterday to remember the dead.
Shops and offices closed for the afternoon as people waited for a memorial service organised by Omagh District Council to begin.
By 3pm hundreds of people had gathered in torrential rain beside the 'Garden of Light' memorial on Drumragh Avenue to watch the service.
Others congregated at the site of the bomb in Market Street where a glass obelisk was due to be unveiled.
Victims' families who had chosen to attend the service sat in front of a small stage beside politicians, including Taoiseach Brian Cowen, Secretary of State Shaun Woodward, Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, and DUP junior minister Jeffrey Donaldson.
Representatives from the four main Churches, including co-chairs of the Omagh Churches Forum Monsignor Joe Donnelly and Rev William Seale, sat on the stage along with former Beirut hostage and Church of England envoy Terry Waite.
Crowds standing on the bridge beside the memorial garden watched the service on a big screen as members of the Omagh Waterford Peace Choir sang the first hymn.
A little girl in a raincoat was hoisted on to her father's shoulders but quickly jumped under the cover of a large umbrella as the heavens opened.
Daniel McSorley, chief executive of Omagh District Council, read an extract from the Omagh memorial narrative while Sinead McLaughlin from Buncrana and Paula Helguero Mahon from Madrid read out greetings in memory of victims from Donegal and Spain who lost their lives in the tragedy.
At 3.03pm a prayer was read by members of the Omagh Churches Forum John Murdock, from the First Omagh Presbyterian, Sam McGuffin, representing Omagh Methodist Church and Brendan McCarthy, from Omagh Community Church.
At 3.10pm, the time that the bomb exploded, members of the crowd bowed their heads during a minute's silence, ended by the ringing of a single church bell.
Omagh native Ronnie Moran's voice cracked as he read John Hewitt's poem Neither an Elegy nor a Manifesto.
The final line of the poem 'Bear in mind these dead' was read in Irish by John McLaughlin from Buncrana, whose 12-year-old son Sean died, and in Spanish by Ana Abad, the sister of 23-year-old victim Rocio Abad Ramos.
Caroline Martin, whose sister Esther Gibson died, repeated the line in English.
The crowd fell silent as the Duchess of Abercorn read out names of those who lost their lives.
A reading from the Book of Ecclesiastes and a hymn sung by Omagh Waterford peace choir followed.
Mr Waite then spoke. The former Church envoy acknowledged that no-one has ever been convicted in connection with the atrocity.
"We know that in a flawed and broken world complete justice is hardly ever experienced," he said.
He acknowledged that plans to commemorate the bombing have divided some of the families of the victims.
"There can be support groups and understanding helpers and criminal trials," he said.
"But at root the individual has to face the wounds that has been inflicted on them. It is not for anyone to judge how the other responds to suffering."
The choir sang another hymn, Let there be Peace on Earth, followed by a reading from St Matthew.
A piece written by a mother who lost her child in the Omagh bombing was also read.
"It can be painful to face the facts of our experience and the crisis it has created, yet this is the first step to becoming whole again," she said.
"At such times, when we reach deep within ourselves, we will find hidden strengths, courage and hope, which we never knew existed."
Eyes turned to a big screen as a camera focused on Market Street where piper Drew McDermott played a lament, while children scattered petals around the bomb site.
The bagpipe lament was echoed by a female uilleann piper at the memorial service.
Chairman of Omagh council, Sinn Fein councillor Martin McColgan, then officially opened the 'Garden of Light' while chairman of the Omagh Fund, Sean O'Dwyer, turned on a mirror in the garden which tracks the sun, known as a heliostat.
The service ended with a prayer and the hymn Be Thou My Vision before politicians and victims' families laid wreaths in the memorial garden.
Many hurried away as the politicians were whisked away in their cars as the rain grew heavier.
However, others-stayed to watch as members of the victims' families walked through the small garden, some tracing the wording of the memorial with their hands.
Further Information
Publisher: THE IRISH NEWS
Ref: IN10An/20
Published Date: 16-Aug-08
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