AWARD TO HONOUR EMMET'S COURAGE
Award to honour Emmet's courage
A nine-year-old boy who survived the Omagh bombing was yesterday among 11 youngsters being honoured as Children of Courage.
The group was welcomed to Downing Street by Prime Minister Tony Blair and his wife Cherie for 1998 Women's Own Children of Courage awards.
Emmet McLaughlin of Buncrana, Co Donegal, has amazed everyone with courage, zest for life and amazing recovery after August's Omagh bombing.
The massive explosion killed his cousin Oran Doherty, eight, and two friends, James Barker and Sean McLaughlin, after the group decided to make a last-minute trip into town.
Emmet, who underwent emergency surgery to remove shrapnel from his bowel and suffered severe burns to his hands and face, said: "I 'm getting an award because I was brave in hospital.
"My hands are still real scratchy and itchy sometimes, and a piece of metal got stuck in my stomach.
"After the bomb I just wanted to see my mummy and daddy and see my friends."
Emmet spent two weeks in hospital and returned to school 10 days after being discharged, where playing football with his friends helped him back on the road to a normal life.
But he still faces further operations on his hands, and is plagued with nightmares about the bombing.
His mother, Patricia McLaughlin, said she hoped the award would help him cope with the continuing trauma of the bombing.
"When we heard about the award we really did not realise what it meant but now we know that it is a great privilege, and maybe not now but in years to come I hope he will be very proud of it and perhaps it will even help him recover,." she said.
"He gets nightmares sometimes and me and his father just have to cuddle him for about half-an-hour, and then he is fine.
"He seems to be a very normal boy now leading a normal life - he's back at school and playing football and it's all so great.
"However for my sister, whose son died, it is all still so very hard for her because we are getting all this attention now and we just think of what happened to him.
"For us there is also a little sadness and a little guilt because Emmet survived and Oran did not."
The children of courage spent more than an hour inside Downing Street, over-running their allocated time with Mr and Mrs Blair by more than 45 minutes.
Emmet said: "Mr Blair was very nice he wasn't too scary".
Emmet's father Paddy said: "Mr Blair recognised Emmet from meeting him in Omagh in the summer with Bill Clinton. The Prime Minister told him how brave he was."
A nine-year-old boy who survived the Omagh bombing was yesterday among 11 youngsters being honoured as Children of Courage.
The group was welcomed to Downing Street by Prime Minister Tony Blair and his wife Cherie for 1998 Women's Own Children of Courage awards.
Emmet McLaughlin of Buncrana, Co Donegal, has amazed everyone with courage, zest for life and amazing recovery after August's Omagh bombing.
The massive explosion killed his cousin Oran Doherty, eight, and two friends, James Barker and Sean McLaughlin, after the group decided to make a last-minute trip into town.
Emmet, who underwent emergency surgery to remove shrapnel from his bowel and suffered severe burns to his hands and face, said: "I 'm getting an award because I was brave in hospital.
"My hands are still real scratchy and itchy sometimes, and a piece of metal got stuck in my stomach.
"After the bomb I just wanted to see my mummy and daddy and see my friends."
Emmet spent two weeks in hospital and returned to school 10 days after being discharged, where playing football with his friends helped him back on the road to a normal life.
But he still faces further operations on his hands, and is plagued with nightmares about the bombing.
His mother, Patricia McLaughlin, said she hoped the award would help him cope with the continuing trauma of the bombing.
"When we heard about the award we really did not realise what it meant but now we know that it is a great privilege, and maybe not now but in years to come I hope he will be very proud of it and perhaps it will even help him recover,." she said.
"He gets nightmares sometimes and me and his father just have to cuddle him for about half-an-hour, and then he is fine.
"He seems to be a very normal boy now leading a normal life - he's back at school and playing football and it's all so great.
"However for my sister, whose son died, it is all still so very hard for her because we are getting all this attention now and we just think of what happened to him.
"For us there is also a little sadness and a little guilt because Emmet survived and Oran did not."
The children of courage spent more than an hour inside Downing Street, over-running their allocated time with Mr and Mrs Blair by more than 45 minutes.
Emmet said: "Mr Blair was very nice he wasn't too scary".
Emmet's father Paddy said: "Mr Blair recognised Emmet from meeting him in Omagh in the summer with Bill Clinton. The Prime Minister told him how brave he was."
Further Information
Publisher: NEWS LETTER
Ref: NL/151
Published Date: 17-Dec-98
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