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Tuesday, 25 Apr 2023
Updated / Tuesday, 25 Apr 2023 17:14
By Conor Hunt
The inquest into the Stardust fire on Valentine's night in 1981, which
is said to be the biggest inquest in the history of the State, has
adjourned after its first day.
The blaze claimed the lives of 48 young people who were attending a
Valentine's Day event at the Stardust Ballroom in Artane.
The mother of teenager Michael Barrett who died on the night, described
him as a great and kind son.
Gertrude Barrett also said he was a great brother, ambitious and
hopeful for the future.
She said the 17-year-old, who was an apprentice plumber, had planned to
start a family business.
He was working on the night of the fire as an assistant DJ.
She said her family was a happy one until the night of the fire. After
that, their lives changed forever, she said.
She said the aftermath was a living nightmare and said she would never
forget the callousness of it all.
The mother of Carol Bissett who died in the fire, described her as a
beautiful daughter.
Betty Bissett told the inquest that that the 18-year-old's death had
devastated the family.
In emotional testimony, she described Carol as a lovely friend and said
if you had her as a friend, you had a friend for life.
The inquest will sit again tomorrow morning
She said she could not take the news of her death and had to go on
strong medication.
Ms Bissett spoke of how Carol died in hospital, three days after the
fire.
"I wasn't there to hold her hand or tell her I love her," she said.
She said Carol's school friends still visit her with their own children
and said she wondered if Carol would have some of her own.
Carol's sister, Liz, who was seven years old when the tragedy happened,
wrote and read a poem in her honour. It included the lines:
"My grief with memories, I bury deep
They only surface when I sleep."
"I just wish I go to say good night
And wish I could have held you tight."
Liz Bissett then broke down in years, while the families in court gave
the Bissetts a standing ovation.
The inquest has adjourned for today and is due to sit again at 11am
tomorrow where more pen portraits will be read out.
At the start of proceedings, the coroner Dr Myra Cullinane, read aloud
the names of all of those who died.
She said it was a very important morning and told the jury the pen
portraits would help them picture the young people at the time of fire.
She said they were at the heart of this inquest and their lives must be
vindicated.
The inquest is due to hear from families, witnesses, and experts and is
expected to take around six months.
The inquest is said to be the biggest in the history of the State.
It will sit four days a week and is expected to pause in July before
resuming in September.
Families of the victims of the Stardust fire gathered this morning at
the Garden of Remembrance and walked the short distance to the Pillar
Room on the grounds of the Rotunda Hospital campus where the inquest is
being held.
Justice is not just a word, it's a commitment to the innocent souls
lost in the Stardust fire, and to the 48 lives that were cut short.
Let their tragedy be a reminder that we must never tire in our
pursuit for justice. pic.twitter.com/ArJfOm4CcU
— Justice for Stardust 48 (@48NeverCameHome) April 9, 2023
'Living nightmare'
Antoinette Keegan, Stardust survivor and campaigner, said the start of
the inquest is a "massive, amazing, brilliant day", but that it should
not have taken so long.
"We are finally here," she said, "and it is so sad that my mother and
father are not here to see it and witness all they had achieved for the
48 victims".
Ms Keegan's two sisters, Mary and Martina, died in the fire.
"Our family home was never the same after they died," she said.
There has not been any time to grieve properly for her sisters and
parents because they have had to fight so hard for justice, she added.
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Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Ms Keegan said the traumatic event
of the fire is constantly on her mind.
"It's a living nightmare," she said.
"It's in my brain. I consume it morning, noon and night."
She said her sister and brother would read poems for their siblings at
the Garden of Remembrance, while she would also speak.
"We will talk about the lives that they had the happiness that we had
in our home and what they achieved.....our family home was never the
same again," she said.
Ms Keegan said she would attend the inquest as much as she can to
represent her sisters and parents.
"We didn't have a family home after the Stardust," she said.
"We had a happy home and then it was sad. We hadn't got a home because
our parents were outside all trying to campaign for justice for the
48."
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Read more: What will the Stardust inquest attempt to address?