They hadn’t got a voice... and we were determined never to let them down. Their day was today
long for the families of those killed in the fire to get a verdict from an inquest.
There was an eruption of applause followed by tears from the families and loved ones of the victims who packed the Dublin District Coroner’s Court yesterday as the long-awaited and hardfought verdict was returned.
‘This day is for the 48,’ said longtime campaigner Antoinette Keegan, whose two sisters Mary, 19, and Martina, 16, died in the blaze. ‘They hadn’t got a voice, we were their voice, and we were determined that we were never going to let them down, and their day was today.’
Following the verdicts, Ms Keegan received a phone call from Taoiseach Simon Harris and told him she wanted a State apology.
Mr Harris, who described the events of February 14, 1981, as one of ‘the darkest moments in our history’ has committed to meeting the families as soon as possible.
Maurice Frazer, who lost his 20year-old sister Thelma in the blaze, called for a ‘meaningful public apology’ from the State, describing the inquests into the deaths as a ‘turning point’.
‘In 2009, the finding of the Stardust Tribunal 1981 of probable arson was finally removed. That’s 28 years later, 28 years of a loved one’s names smeared with a label of arson.
‘This is why we the families need a meaningful public apology from the Irish State. Today marks a turning point, a step towards closure, healing, towards a future
‘I feel vindicated today’
where justice prevails,’ he said.
Alison Croker, whose older sister Jacqueline, 19, was also killed in the Stardust fire, agreed.
She said: ‘I feel vindicated today that we’ve got truth, we’ve got the justice, and now I think it’s time that the Irish state actually apologise to each and every one of us for the systematic abuse that we’ve been put through having to relive this ordeal over and over again.’
That sentiment was echoed by solicitor Darragh Mackin of Phoenix Law, who represents many of the families of the victims.
He said: ‘In 1981 these young people, inhumanely identified by a number, were stripped of their integrity and their dignity, stripped of their dignity by the very same state that had stripped them of their very basic human rights.
‘The result was the criminalisation of victims and patrons. The pain and suffering of these families was relentless.
‘Without truth and justice, those wounds would never heal. Their spirit was boundless. In the darkest days, they had hope.
‘Dr [Myra] Cullinane [coroner] restored their identity, she restored their humanity and most importantly, she restored their faith in the rule of law. The 48 that never came home have now come home. They’re at home in peace that justice has now been done and has been seen to be done.’
President Michael D Higgins said it was ‘a day of vindication and of honour, but also a day of ‘the deepest sadness and regret’.
The verdict came following decades of campaigning for justice, and a year of evidence – with former nightclub manager Eamon Butterly having made a lastminute attempt to delay the verdict further through a High Court challenge. It can now be reported that Mr Butterly sought permission last month for a judicial review of decisions made by Coroner Dr Myra Cullinane to allow a verdict of unlawful killing. His application was refused.
After deliberating over 11 days, the panel of seven women and five men returned to the Pillar Room at the Rotunda Hospital yesterday afternoon to deliver their majority findings and verdicts to Dr Cullinane.
The victims, aged between 16 and 27, lost their lives in the early hours of Valentine’s Day, February 14, 1981. In their findings, the jury said that they were able to establish the cause of the fire as being an electrical fault in the hot press of the Artane nightclub.
They said it was not possible to establish exactly when the fire started, but it was first seen outside the building between 1.20am and 1.40am and was first seen inside the ballroom between 1.35am and 1.40am.
The jury said that they were able to establish that at the time of the fire, a number of emergency exits were either locked, chained or otherwise obstructed.
They said the covering on the seats, the height of the ceiling in the west alcove, and the carpet tiles on the walls contributed to the spread of the fire.
The jurors said that those who died were impeded in their escape from the burning building by the lack of staff preparedness.
In answer to the question as to whether any of these factors had caused or contributed to the deaths, the jury replied: ‘Yes.’
Bridget McDermott, 86, who lost three children in the fire – William, Marcella and George – was in court for the verdicts. Her daughter Louise paid tribute to her mother afterwards.
‘Our mother is here, and we don’t know how she’s still with us, but she is, and she was here today to get the unlawful killing [verdicts] of her three children,’ she said. ‘It was a very emotional day for all the families here, all of us. For 43 years we had to fight and we shouldn’t have had to have done. None of us. We shouldn’t be here now, this should have been sorted and done long ago.’
Louise McDermott added: ‘I’d really just like to say to the 48 now that we’re taking you out of the flames, the darkness and the
‘It was a very emotional day’
smoke of the Stardust and we’re bringing you back to the sunshine, and the light and the music, and you’re coming back to us, home.’
Earlier, Taoiseach Simon Harris had said: ‘The Stardust tragedy was one of the darkest moments in our history, a heart-breaking tragedy because of the lives that were lost, the families that were changed forever, and the long, drawn-out struggle for justice that followed.’
He continued: ‘For over four decades, the families of the victims have carried the weight of this tragedy with unwavering strength and dignity.
‘Their relentless pursuit of truth and accountability, their profound commitment to justice, even in the face of overwhelming challenges and setbacks, was not only a fight for their loved ones but a campaign to ensure that such a disaster never happens again.’
Tánaiste Micheál Martin said: ‘The tenacity of those families and their success in securing this verdict at inquest has been a service to all.
‘Nothing will take away the pain and loss that the families experience to this day, but I hope that this process and verdict will, in due course, be of help to them.’
The year-long inquest hearing is the longest in Irish history.
The original Stardust fire inquests, which took place in March 1982, lasted just five days with the findings confined to the medical cause of death in respect of each deceased.
The Keane Tribunal concluded in November 1981 that the fire was likely caused by arson – causing great pain to the families, who felt their relatives were being blamed – and exonerating the nightclub management.
That finding was dismissed in 2009, as having no evidence to support it.