The Daily Populous Friday August 16th, 2019 morning edition
21 years ago today, an IRA bomb in the red car killed 29 people in Northern Ireland. This photograph was taken moments before detonation. The man and child in the picture survived, the photographer did not.
This photo is absolutely heartbreaking and captures everything wrong with the Troubles. 18 Catholics and 11 Protestants were killed. as noted by u/BitterProgress The Real IRA (a PIRA splinter group that opposed the GFA) carried out the attack, however claimed it did not want any civilian casualties and declared a ceasefire soon after (which they have broken since). I don't think anyone was ever prosecuted for the bombing.
When I lived in Dublin I did a weekend trip up to Northern Ireland, visiting Belfast and Derry. It was so striking to me how much the division feels so present, even all these years later.
Omagh native here. I was a young child in 1998, but my parents have told me of some of the stories of the personal impact of the bomb. There's one in particular which makes my heart break for the family involved.
My dad's cousin worked in one of the shops beside where the bomb went off. A woman, pregnant with twins, was shopping with her mum and one year old daughter. They were served in the shop by my dad's cousin. They paid for their purchases at the counter. The mum said something to her daughter along the lines of 'say bye bye to the lady' (i.e. my dad's cousin). The little girl did. They walked out of the shop, the bomb went off, killing them all instantly. My dad's cousin survived because she was standing behind the counter, which bore the impact of the blast and the shrapnel.
I often think about that family. I cannot begin to imagine the trauma they have endured, losing three generations of women in a split second, and also having two lives ended before they could even begin.
yama_arashii on August 15th, 2019 at 12:18 UTC »
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This photo is absolutely heartbreaking and captures everything wrong with the Troubles. 18 Catholics and 11 Protestants were killed. as noted by u/BitterProgress The Real IRA (a PIRA splinter group that opposed the GFA) carried out the attack, however claimed it did not want any civilian casualties and declared a ceasefire soon after (which they have broken since). I don't think anyone was ever prosecuted for the bombing.
rp_361 on August 15th, 2019 at 14:56 UTC »
When I lived in Dublin I did a weekend trip up to Northern Ireland, visiting Belfast and Derry. It was so striking to me how much the division feels so present, even all these years later.
Webmasterer on August 15th, 2019 at 16:42 UTC »
Omagh native here. I was a young child in 1998, but my parents have told me of some of the stories of the personal impact of the bomb. There's one in particular which makes my heart break for the family involved.
My dad's cousin worked in one of the shops beside where the bomb went off. A woman, pregnant with twins, was shopping with her mum and one year old daughter. They were served in the shop by my dad's cousin. They paid for their purchases at the counter. The mum said something to her daughter along the lines of 'say bye bye to the lady' (i.e. my dad's cousin). The little girl did. They walked out of the shop, the bomb went off, killing them all instantly. My dad's cousin survived because she was standing behind the counter, which bore the impact of the blast and the shrapnel.
I often think about that family. I cannot begin to imagine the trauma they have endured, losing three generations of women in a split second, and also having two lives ended before they could even begin.