Then & Now: Brave Limerick man gave his life in rescue

PATRICK SHEAHAN, (pictured below), a constable in the Dublin Metropolitan Police Force lost his life in an act of heroism 118 years ago. The Limerick man died while attempting to rescue a number of men who had been overcome by fumes in a sewer.

He was a native of Ballyguiltenane, in the parish of Glin and a granduncle of John Sheahan, musician and singer, with the Dubliners. He was stationed in Castle Street and the date of the incident was May 6, 1905. It was supposed to be his day off, but he had agreed to swap his shift with a work colleague to allow him to take his girlfriend to the theatre. The following details became available after the inquest into his death.

At about 2pm that afternoon John Fleming, a fitter with Henry Martin and Company and two work mates John Coleman, and Christopher Breen went to the Burgh Quay junction near the headquarters of the Irish Press newspaper. The purpose of their mission was to let the water from the South Quay sewer run into the main drainage. This involved operating a device on the surface and did not require entry to the sewer, but John Fleming became suspicious and thought one of the pipes had burst.
He descended about 30 feet and collapsed, and John Coleman went to his aid, and he suffered the same fate. Christopher Breen had left on other business at this stage.

A Corporation worker Thomas Rochford was in the area, and he noticed the open manhole which was very dangerous, and he went to investigate. He saw the two men in the hole one lying on his back unconscious, and the other bent over and delirious. He entered the sewer and he also fell unconscious.

Christopher Nolan, a 16-year-old newspaper boy operating on nearby Hawkins Street noticed what was unfolding and he went for help. He met Constable 45B Patrick Sheahan on duty at O’Connell Bridge who rushed to the scene . He met Aidan Lawless who ran for a rope and summoned help. Patrick Sheahan and Kevin Fitzpatrick, a hackney driver descended into the sewer and played a big part in helping pull up the three unconscious men.

Patrick was a big man –standing 6’4’’ and weighing 18 stone and he was 29 years old. He was a member of the Dublin Metropolitan Police international tug-o-war team and a fine specimen of humanity. All of this was no defence and he and Fitzpatrick were soon overcome by the noxious gases. The reinforcements had arrived by now and the Fire Brigade personnel with the aid of gas masks managed to bring the stricken men to the surface.

There were frantic scenes as the crowd gathered and many fell to their knees in prayer. The victims were taken to Mercers and Jervis Street Hospital where they were pronounced dead a short while later. John Fleming from Gordon Street was aged 42 and he left a widow and nine children after him.

Patrick's Funeral Mass was said at 6am in Mount Argus Church on Tuesday May 9, in order to catch the 9am train to Limerick. At the Mass Father Columbian Tyne, C.P. eulogised: “Patrick Sheahan -Limerick man, Irishman, Christian hero, I cannot refrain from congratulating the Metropolitan Police Force in Dublin in having had such a glorious type of man in their midst for whom all Ireland mourns.’’

The route from the church to Kingsbridge Railway Station for the early-morning train was lined all the way by the ordinary citizens of Dublin. The hearse drawn by four white-plumed horses was accompanied by the D.M.P. Mounted Troop with the bands and large contingents of the D.M.P. and R.I.C.in full dress uniform, the Dublin Fire Brigade in brass helmets, and crews in uniform of the Dublin United Tramways.

The remains were escorted on the journey by chief mourners, his brother John, also a constable sister Johanna, and brother-in-law Timothy Hanrahan. In Limerick, the cortege was headed by the Sarsfield Band and a Guard of Honour of the R.I.C. On the outskirts of Glin, it was joined by the boys of the local Industrial School with their band. A huge crowd including his parents Edward and Mary saw his remains interred in Kilfergus Cemetery. The prayers at the grave side were recited in Irish.
A marble headstone was erected over his grave by the DMP, and a plaque mounted in Glin Church. A year later on August 3, from the proceeds of a public subscription the monument at Burgh Quay was unveiled to the memory of Patrick Sheahan and John Fleming, by Lord Mayor Joseph Hutchinson.

May springs to life
MAY IS one of my favourite months of the year as it is the time when nature explodes all round us and the sweet, scented air, is alive with the sound of birdsong. The birds are happy and busy as they rise early and go to sleep late. The tunes of the blackbird are sweet, melodic, and throaty and the cuckoo call when it echoes along the valley is delightful to hear.

Nature has a way of making every day different, beautiful and unique. It is nice to celebrate nature, not just for its own sake, but as an expression of the glory of God who is credited with creating the world. There is so much to admire and give thanks for including a tapestry of colour and growth during the month of May. It can often be the simple things in life, which can give people the most pleasurable of gifts for the least amount of effort.

One of the things that give me pleasure during this time is the sight of the wild bluebell, whose flowering time covers April to June. The bluebell woods of Ireland and Britain have been written about over the centuries, and they are considered to be some of the most spectacular floral displays in Europe. The bluebell forms carpets in woodland and scrub, and are to be found also on hedge banks, and sea cliffs.

Community park in Limerick gets official opening

The flower blooms just as the trees are coming into leaf, and they are an easily recognizable plant. The fragrant nodding violet blue flowers, have creamy white anthers. They are clustered on one side in groups of five, to fifteen, each flower ending with two blue membranous bracts on its base. The narrow dark green leaves, which rise from the base may persist for some weeks after flowering.

How lovely it is to stand in the heart of a bluebell wood and see the blues, spread out on every side. The trees are waking slowly into life and the birds sitting upon the boughs, sing songs as if celebrating nature also. The light shining through the trees, onto the flowers make them shimmer and shine, in all their splendour.

While walking through a carpet of bluebells, a person can be filled with the wonders of the world all round them. The bluebell flower can lift the spirit, of renewal, restoration and hope, as the wood is still a place of wonder and healing as it has been for so long for so many people.