Ireland to begin excavation of mass grave at Church-run Mother and Baby home
An investigation into the network of Catholic Church-run homes was launched almost a decade ago after evidence of an unmarked mass graveyard at the County Galway town of Tuam was uncovered by an amateur local historian who was haunted by childhood memories of skinny children at a local home.
The remains of 802 children, from newborns to three-year-olds, were buried in Tuam from 1925 to 1961, the government-commissioned investigation found. It discovered an "appalling" mortality rate of around 15% among children born at all of the so-called Mother and Baby Homes.
"We never thought this day would come," Anna Corrigan, whose two brothers were born in Tuam, told reporters next to railings that cordon off the site. Records show at least one of the boys died at the home.
"They got no dignity in life and they got no dignity in death, so hopefully their voices are heard because I think they've been crying for a long time to be found."
The 2021 report, which found around 9,000 children died in the homes where young pregnant women were hidden from society for decades, was the latest in a series of damning reports that laid bare some of the Catholic Church's darkest chapters.
The Tuam home, run by nuns from the Bon Secours Order, was demolished in the 1970s and replaced by a housing estate. Significant quantities of human skeletal remains were found in chambers along with babies' shoes and nappy pins underneath a patch of grass near a playground during test excavations.
Daniel MacSweeney, the head of the excavation, told a news conference that he could not underestimate the difficulty of the "incredibly complex" project.
Experts from Colombia, Spain, Britain, Canada, Australia and the U.S. have joined Irish specialists for the excavation. A JCB digger and construction prefabs stood beside the cleared out playground at the site on Monday.
MacSweeney said the complexity of their work includes the fact that some of the infant remains are co-mingled underground, the difficulty in telling apart male remains from female for those so young, whether DNA is recoverable, and a lack of archival data.
Officials expect the dig to take around two years.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
7 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Samaritans to close around half its 200 branches as volunteers raise fears over working from home
Suicide prevention charity Samaritans are planning to close around half of its 200 branches across the UK and Ireland. The charity has said that its current operation is 'not sustainable' and while an exact number of closures is yet to be confirmed, volunteers have been told it is likely to affect around 100. Founded in 1953, the charity aims to prevent suicides by connecting trained volunteers with people who may be struggling. It estimates that volunteers answer a call for help every 10 seconds and many of its staff view themselves as the fourth emergency service. But plans to work from home have raised fears among volunteers, with up to a quarter of branches having voiced concerns, as some believe it will cause many to leave the charity. Some volunteers only began helping out after feeling isolated at home themselves, while others are concerned about the pressure of dealing with suicide related calls alone. Some female volunteers have also said working alone could leave them dealing with abusive and sexual calls by themselves. The charity is also considering withdrawing from some activities, such as talks in schools and providing the Veterans Emotional Support Line. 'We're not against change,' one volunteer told the BBC, 'but they've not provided any evidence these changes will improve the charity. It feels more like the professionalisation of the Samaritans.' The location of the closures are yet to be decided. Despite half in danger of being cut, the charity has insisted its volunteers will continue to be available as usual, 24 hours a day and 365 days a year. The organisation is also understood to be considering scaling up other branches or increasing their volunteer capacity, as fewer but larger branches could mean less resources spent on managing buildings and more spent on delivering and improving its listening service. The charity's chief executive Julie Bentley said: 'Samaritans provides a life-saving service, day and night, 365 days a year but the changing needs of our callers and volunteers means thinking differently about the way our services need to work. 'We are engaging with our volunteers on proposed improvements that will mean we are able to answer more calls, have more volunteers on duty, and be there for more people in their darkest moments. 'Samaritans volunteers are hugely dedicated to being there for our callers and they remain at the heart of our service, but it has become increasingly clear that having over 200 branches, varying in size from 10 to 300 volunteers, is not sustainable and hinders us providing the best possible service to people who need us.' The charity's board is expected to meet about plans in September. Closures could begin in April in the UK while consultation on potential closures in Ireland could start in 2027.
The Independent
a day ago
- The Independent
Hundreds gather at vigil for mother and children killed in Co Fermanagh shooting
Hundreds of people have gathered for a community vigil in memory of a woman and her two teenage children who died following a shooting in Co Fermanagh. People wrapped their arms around each other as they remembered Vanessa Whyte, 45, a vet originally from Co Clare, her son James, 14, and daughter Sara, 13. The vigil was organised by a community group and held at the primary school, Maguiresbridge Primary School, where James and Sara previously attended. A book of condolence, set up next to a framed photo of the family and surrounded by white flowers and candles, was also opened at the school. The principal of Maguiresbridge Primary School, Honor Irvine, described both James and Sara as popular pupils who loved sport. 'I'm a teaching principal so I taught them both for two years,' she told the PA news agency. 'James was full of fun, always laughing, loved to get a laugh, loved to be outdoors. 'Sara was the same. Sara loved outdoors, bit of a tomboy, and the two of them got on very well, (had) lots of friends and were very popular in school.' She described their mother Vanessa, who was a member of the parents' support group which organised fundraisers for the school, as 'full of life', and a 'roll up your sleeves, get the job done' type of person. She said the vigil, facilitated by the school, offered a place for the community to grieve together. 'It's been lovely to hear people who knew Vanessa and knew Sara and knew James, talking about them and sharing memories,' she said. 'For the community, its a place to mourn together and to support and comfort each other.' She said the family were 'much loved' and would 'live on in our memories at Maguiresbridge Primary School for many, many years to come'. 'It's hard to put it into words to be honest, we're just heartbroken. And I don't think it has sunk in, it will be the days and weeks ahead when we realise the tragic loss that has happened in this community,' she added. The vigil was organised by the Village Rural Development Association to give people an opportunity to 'come together and support each other at this difficult time'. 'This is an opportunity for our village to stand together in the face of such grief,' it said in a statement on social media. Flowers, teddy bears and an Arsenal football top with written notes have been laid close to scene of the incident in Drummeer Road. A fourth person, a man who was a member of the same household, remains in a serious condition in hospital in Belfast following the incident on Wednesday. A murder investigation has been launched and police said a triple murder and attempted suicide is one line of inquiry being pursued. First Minister Michelle O'Neill said the level of the tragedy is 'overwhelming'. 'Everybody I have been speaking to finds it very hard to convey what they really feel, deep in their hearts, because there are moments in life that really do stop us in our tracks, and certainly for me, this feels like one of those moments,' she told the BBC. 'People are really stunned and tears have been shed for this beautiful family. You only have to think about Vanessa, a young mother, her two gorgeous children, a whole life ahead of them, and that has all now been cut short. 'It's a harrowing time, obviously immediately for their family, for everybody that loved them, everybody that knew them, the community that they lived in, the wider Fermanagh community and even further than that. This has impacted so many people.' Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir described what happened as 'heartbreaking'. 'Vanessa was a highly respected vet and work colleague. The situation that has unfolded here is heartbreaking and my thoughts and prayers are with the families, friends, work colleagues of Vanessa, and also James and Sara,' he told the BBC. 'It's really difficult to comprehend to be honest.'
BreakingNews.ie
a day ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Almost 16,000 people homeless in Ireland as another record high reached
Homelessness has reached another record high in Ireland as the number of people using emergency accommodation rose to 15,915. This is up from 15,747 people recorded in the last official Department of Housing tally in May, 4,844 of whom were children. Advertisement Figures published on Friday show 10,957 adults and 4,958 children accessed emergency accommodation in the last week of June. The statistics do not include people sleeping rough, those that may be couch-surfing or homeless in hospitals or prisons, or those in asylum seeker centres or domestic violence shelters. The number of people accessing emergency accommodation has been steadily increasing for years. It surpassed 10,000 people for the first time in 2019 and again in February 2020, before falling to 8,000 in mid-2021. Advertisement An eviction ban was imposed from November 2022 until the end of March 2023 in an attempt to control rising homeless numbers.
