I COULD HAVE LOST MY FAMILY SAYS MOTHER
I could have lost my family says mother
STAFF REPORTER
A WOMAN injured in the Omagh bombing spoke yesterday from her hospital bed of the fear she had felt for her pregnant daughter, who she was out shopping with at the time.
Valerie Emery, 41, and daughter Nicola Emery, 21, were enjoying a browse round the shops in the sunny weather when the bomb exploded.
Mrs Emery, who suffered cuts and fractures to her feet as a result of the blast, said the force of the bomb was like a pillow hitting her around the head.
She described how she saw debris flying all around her as she tried to get to her feet and find her daughter.
Sitting up in bed in the Royal Victoria Infirmary, with husband Raymond, 42, sitting nearby, Mrs Emery was enjoying a visit from Nicola, who is due to give birth to the Emerys' first grandchild within days.
Looking at his wife, Mr Emery said: "I could have lost them all."
The mother and daughter, who live in Omagh town, were with Mrs Emery's cousin Dorothy Graham and her nine-year-old son when they heard the bomb warning.
"I thought it was a hoax but we decided to go home. But before we got home it went off," said Mrs Emery.
Meanwhile, Nicola had crossed the road and avoided the main force of the blast because she was standing behind a wall which she says must have saved her and her unborn child.
In the immediate aftermath of the explosion her first thoughts were for her cousin, who appeared to be missing.
She said: "I frantically looked for him and when we found him I rushed to my mum and tried to lift her up but I couldn't."
Mrs Emery managed to struggle to her car which she had left that morning to go to work at a china shop before meeting her family when she finished at 2.30pm.
"I'm in a daze. I can't remember very much but I could see things falling down all around me. And I managed to get to the car and a friend from work who was there drove me to hospital."
Mrs Emery said her injuries had made her feel quite ill and that she did not take in much of what was happening around her in hospital.
She added: "I can remember seeing people lying everywhere in the hospital though."
She said she's now looking forward to the birth of her grandchild.
"I can't believe what has happened. I just think I'm very lucky to be here," said Mrs Emery.
Of the bombers, she said: "I don't think there is anything that could describe them. They didn't just affect one side, it affected everyone. They didn't care who it was as long as they had victims."
Mrs Emery, whose family is Protestant, said that she was a cousin of Elaine O'Donnell, who was also being treated in the Royal Victoria.
She added: "She has some sort of leg injury, I don't know what it is.
"She was going to get married in three weeks time but obviously that has been cancelled now."
Sitting on the bed next to her mother, Nicola said she was excited about the birth of her child.
She said: "I feel shattered. I think I'm in delayed shock.
"I was very scared at the time. I thought I was going to lose the baby. But I was also worried about my mum."
She said she hoped the birth would give her mother something to look forward to when she gets out of hospital.
STAFF REPORTER
A WOMAN injured in the Omagh bombing spoke yesterday from her hospital bed of the fear she had felt for her pregnant daughter, who she was out shopping with at the time.
Valerie Emery, 41, and daughter Nicola Emery, 21, were enjoying a browse round the shops in the sunny weather when the bomb exploded.
Mrs Emery, who suffered cuts and fractures to her feet as a result of the blast, said the force of the bomb was like a pillow hitting her around the head.
She described how she saw debris flying all around her as she tried to get to her feet and find her daughter.
Sitting up in bed in the Royal Victoria Infirmary, with husband Raymond, 42, sitting nearby, Mrs Emery was enjoying a visit from Nicola, who is due to give birth to the Emerys' first grandchild within days.
Looking at his wife, Mr Emery said: "I could have lost them all."
The mother and daughter, who live in Omagh town, were with Mrs Emery's cousin Dorothy Graham and her nine-year-old son when they heard the bomb warning.
"I thought it was a hoax but we decided to go home. But before we got home it went off," said Mrs Emery.
Meanwhile, Nicola had crossed the road and avoided the main force of the blast because she was standing behind a wall which she says must have saved her and her unborn child.
In the immediate aftermath of the explosion her first thoughts were for her cousin, who appeared to be missing.
She said: "I frantically looked for him and when we found him I rushed to my mum and tried to lift her up but I couldn't."
Mrs Emery managed to struggle to her car which she had left that morning to go to work at a china shop before meeting her family when she finished at 2.30pm.
"I'm in a daze. I can't remember very much but I could see things falling down all around me. And I managed to get to the car and a friend from work who was there drove me to hospital."
Mrs Emery said her injuries had made her feel quite ill and that she did not take in much of what was happening around her in hospital.
She added: "I can remember seeing people lying everywhere in the hospital though."
She said she's now looking forward to the birth of her grandchild.
"I can't believe what has happened. I just think I'm very lucky to be here," said Mrs Emery.
Of the bombers, she said: "I don't think there is anything that could describe them. They didn't just affect one side, it affected everyone. They didn't care who it was as long as they had victims."
Mrs Emery, whose family is Protestant, said that she was a cousin of Elaine O'Donnell, who was also being treated in the Royal Victoria.
She added: "She has some sort of leg injury, I don't know what it is.
"She was going to get married in three weeks time but obviously that has been cancelled now."
Sitting on the bed next to her mother, Nicola said she was excited about the birth of her child.
She said: "I feel shattered. I think I'm in delayed shock.
"I was very scared at the time. I thought I was going to lose the baby. But I was also worried about my mum."
She said she hoped the birth would give her mother something to look forward to when she gets out of hospital.
Further Information
Publisher: NEWS LETTER
Ref: NL/046
Published Date: 18-Aug-98
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