Pope saddened by loss of life in Donegal petrol station blast and offers condolences to all involved
Pope Francis has offered his condolences to the people of Creeslough, Co Donegal, in the wake of a service station explosion that left 10 people dead.
Friday's devastating blast saw a major search and rescue operation with emergency services from Northern Ireland also taking part to find survivors among the debris.
On Sunday, the 10 victims were named. They included a five-year-old girl, her father and another mother and her son.
One man aged in his 20s remains in a critical condition in hospital while seven others are said to be stable.
A statement sent by his representative to Bishop of Raphoe Alexander McGuckian read: “His Holiness Pope Francis was saddened to learn of the loss of life and destruction caused by the explosion in Creeslough and he expresses his spiritual closeness to all those suffering in the aftermath of this tragedy. “While entrusting the deceased to the merciful love of almighty god, His Holiness implores the divine blessings of consolation and healing upon the injured, the displaced and the families coping with pain of loss. “As a pledge of strength and peace in the lord, the Holy Father sends his blessing to all the people of Ireland.”
Police are treating the incident in the small village as a "tragic accident" although investigations are continuing.
Irish premier Micheal Martin has met those who were admitted to hospital after the service station explosion in Co Donegal. The Taoiseach also met with the medical team who were on duty on the day of the explosion in the village of Creeslough, as well as members of Letterkenny fire station. Accompanying Mr Martin were Agriculture Minister and Donegal TD Charlie McConalogue and deputy leader Leo Varadkar.
Northern Ireland Health Minister Robin Swann also thanked those from Northern Ireland's emergency services for the roles they played.
The Northern Ireland Ambulance Service dispatched a number of resources to Creeslough including rapid response paramedics, a number of emergency crews, hazardous area response teams, a non-emergency crew, officer support and the charity air ambulance. The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service deployed its specialist rescue team from Belfast along with a command support from Strabane to support colleagues in Donegal Fire Service.
Mr Swann said: “I would like to express my deepest sympathies to the families and friends of those who tragically lost their lives at Creeslough. Our hearts go out to all those affected and to the wider community. “I pay tribute to the crews from Northern Ireland who answered the call from across the border and brought their expertise and experience to the incident. “The words of gratitude to the NI personnel that have been expressed by the Taoiseach and his Government colleagues are very much appreciated. “Cross-border co-operation has long been a daily reality on this island and there are established protocols in place for mutual aid. “The assistance provided on Friday was about neighbours rushing to support neighbours at their time of need. They would do the same for us in a heartbeat if the situation was reversed.”
Victims of Cresslough petrol station explosion
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