Gardaí confirm identities of 10 killed in Creeslough petrol station explosion

Tragic news.

An Garda Síochána have confirmed the identities of 10 people who died as a result of a fatal explosion at a petrol station in Donegal on Friday, October 7th. The explosion occurred around 3 pm at a petrol station in Creeslough. With the consent of the families, An Garda Síochána confirmed the identities of the deceased during a press conference on Sunday.

James O Flaherty, 48 years

Jessica Gallagher, 24 years

Martin McGill, 49 years

Catherine O Donnell, 39 years and her son, James Monaghan, 13 years

Hugh Kelly, 59 years

Martina Martin, 49 years

Robert Garwe, 50 years and his daughter

Shauna Flanagan Garwe, 5 years

Leona Harper, 14 years.

Garda Family Liaison Officers have been appointed to the families and are continuing to provide support and information. Gardaí continue to investigate all the circumstances in the fatal explosion, and the Garda Technical Bureau, with assistance from other agencies, will continue to examine the scene, which remains cordoned off. Traffic diversions on the N56 at the scene of the incident remain in place. The remains of the deceased are at Letterkenny University Hospital where State Post Mortems have commenced under the direction of Dr. Heidi Okkers, Assistant State Pathologist. These post-mortems will continue over the next few days. Results will not be released for operational reasons. A man in his 20s remains in a critical condition in St. James Hospital, Dublin. The seven other surviving casualties continue to receive treatment in Letterkenny University Hospital and remain in stable condition. In a statement following the explosion, Applegreen's founder and chief executive Joe Barrett described it as a "hugely tragic event" and offered the company's deepest sympathies to the families and friends of those who died and to the community of Creeslough. "We are utterly shocked and saddened at what happened yesterday. I would also like to offer our thanks to the emergency services, and first responders, who are dealing with the incident," he added. "We have been working with our local partners in Creeslough since 2014. We are providing them with assistance and support locally at this very difficult time. "The Applegreen in Creeslough is at the very heart of the village and contains the local post office and supermarket. "Our thoughts and our prayers are with the people of Creeslough. Today we mourn those who have lost their lives alongside the entire country. "We will continue to assist and support our partners, and the wider Creeslough community, in the days and weeks ahead.”