Homeless sister ‘begged for help’ before she died

THE sister of a young woman who died on the streets of Belfast has told how she made a heartbreaking plea for help days before she passed away.

Catherine Kenny (32) was found dead in a shop doorway close to City Hall in March 2016.

She was the fifth person to die in the city in the first three months of that year.

In an interview with The Guardian, Lee-Maria Hughes (39) told how her sister battled drink and drug dependency since her teens.

They had lost their mother, also called Catherine, and father, Michael. They died two years apart in 2007 and 2009.

Catherine’s addictions led her to sleep rough on the streets, which Lee-Maria says was “a terrible period”.

The final 11 months of Catherine’s life were “a whole new level of horror”, she recalls.

Catherine suffered seizures in the final weeks of her life, including one on March 14 which led her to be hospitalised.

Ms Hughes recalls being at her sister’s bedside.

“I said to her: ‘My God, sweetheart, what am I gonna do with you?’ “She just opened her eyes and said: ‘Will you help me? Please help me, I need help’.”

Tragic death: Catherine Kenny

Tragically, Catherine was found dead in a shop doorway at the corner of Donegall Place and Castle Lane days later.

Lee-Maria described how she had spent hours trying to get her sister into rehab units across Northern Ireland before she died.

She recalled: “I finally get speaking to a girl up in Derry, and I remember it as clear as day.

“I said: ‘I need you to take my sister, please help me get my sister better,’ and she said to me: ‘The soonest I can see your sister is three weeks. If I deem her fit to come in and use our services, then that is what will happen’.

“I said: ‘Well, what would you like me to do with my sister for three weeks?’ She said: ‘I have no idea, but she can’t come here.’ And my sister died four days later in a stinking, dirty doorway in our capital city.”

In the wide-ranging Guardian interview, Lee-Maria vividly remembers the moment she learned her sister had passed away. It came when police arrived in an unmarked squad car. She says she knew in her heart why they were there.

She remembers opening the door and was greeted by a tall policeman.

“He says: ‘There’s no easy way to say this: Catherine was found dead an hour ago’,” she recalls.

“And my world came crashing down around me.”

Shortly before her death, Catherine served three months in Hydebank Wood College Prison.

Lee-Maria said she was pleased when her sister, whom she had supported her entire life, was arrested.

“I know that’s selfish of me, but I knew she was safe and was getting dry and getting all her square meals and getting her medical attention,” she added.

Catherine had a close relationship with William ‘Jimmy’ Coulter, who died on the streets two days before Catherine was due to be released.

Three years on, Lee-Maria has raised thousands of pounds for the Welcome Organisation, which works with homeless people.