Buncrana families unite in grief at Omagh anniversary vigil

Twenty years have passed since the Omagh bombing atrocity, but the pain remains for victims’ families in Co. Tyrone, Co. Donegal and Spain. 

A special vigil was held tonight at Knockalla Drive in Buncrana in remembrance of three local boys and two Spanish visitors who were killed in the attack on August 15th 1998.

Eight-year-old Oran Doherty and two twelve-year-olds, Shaun McLaughlin and James Barker, were on a group trip to Omagh in 1998 when they were caught in the blast.

Spanish exchange student Fernando Blasco Baselga, 12, and group leader Rocio Abad Ramous, 23, who were staying in Inishowen, also got caught in the bombing.

A poignant vigil was held tonight close to the homes of Shaun and Oran to remember the young lives lost in the worst terrorist atrocity in the history of the Troubles. Mothers Patricia McLaughlin and Bernie Doherty were supported by over a hundred local residents during the emotional candlelit ceremony.

Twenty nine people, including a woman pregnant with twins, were killed and hundreds more injured in the violent Omagh car bombing 20 years ago. A splinter group calling themselves the Real IRA was blamed for the attack, but nobody has been convicted of murder 20 years on.

A public vigil was held this afternoon in Omagh to coincide with the time of the bombing. A memorial bell tolled 32 times – one for each of the 31 victims, and once more for all those who have lost their lives to terrorist atrocities around the world.

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