Creeslough explosion: Funeral takes place for five-year-old and father killed in blast
Irish president attends final service for the 10 victims of petrol station catastrophe
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Your support makes all the difference.Irish president Michael D Higgins was among the mourners at the final funeral for victims of the Creeslough service station explosion.
Five-year-old Shauna Flanagan Garwe and her father Robert, 50, were remembered at St Michael's Church in the County Donegal village.
The pair were found in each other’s arms after the catastrophic blast last Friday. They had been to the shop to buy treats.
On Saturday, villagers lined the streets as two hearses carried their coffins to the service – the sixth held here in five days.
Leading the service, parish priest Father John Joe Duffy said: “We pray that they are side by side in heaven.”
He described their bond as a “beautiful love”.
Mr Garwe’s beloved scooter and Shauna’s favourite unicorn teddy had been placed at the front of the church.
Both were well known and much loved in the village. Mr Garwe, originally from Zimbabwe, worked in construction and could often be seen travelling around the village on his scooter, while Shauna started at Scoil Mhuire National School in Creeslough just weeks ago.
The funerals of fashion student Jessica Gallagher, 24, and Celtic supporter Martin McGill, 49, were held in Creeslough on Tuesday, while a funeral mass for Catherine O'Donnell, 39, and her 13-year-old son James Monaghan took place on Wednesday afternoon.
A service for Sydney native James O'Flaherty, 48, was held on Wednesday in Derrybeg.
The funeral of shop worker and mother of four Martina Martin, 49, took place in Creeslough on Thursday morning and a service for 14-year-old Leona Harper was held at St Mary’s Church in Ramelton later that day. The funeral of the oldest victim, Hugh Kelly, took place there on Friday.
Mr Higgins has been attending the funerals of the victims since Wednesday and has spent time with grieving families.
The Taoiseach’s aide-de-camp, commandant Claire Mortimer, and agriculture minister Charlie McConalogue have also been attending funerals.
Ireland’s police force, An Garda Siochana, continues to investigate the cause of the blast, which is being treated as an accident.
As well as the 10 killed in the explosion, eight others were hurt.
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