Creeslough tragedy – cross-border search and rescue effort praised

The cross-border search and rescue effort following the devastating service station explosion in Co Donegal has been praised.

Emergency workers from across Northern Ireland joined their colleagues in the Irish republic in the village of Creeslough on Friday afternoon in the desperate search through the rubble.

Those included the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service, Ambulance Service and the Air Ambulance.

Deputy chief fire and rescue officer Paul Harper said they sent their specialist rescue team from Belfast along with a command support unit from Strabane to the incident, working with other emergency services into the early hours of Saturday in the hope of rescuing survivors trapped in the rubble.

Taoiseach Micheal Martin said the solidarity “will be long remembered”.

“We want to pay tribute to all the essential services, those who worked throughout the night, at times in danger, to rescue people and to do everything they could to comfort people,” he said.

“Our emergency services from health, firefighting, gardai, right across the board, all across the north west, and particularly our colleagues in Northern Ireland, fire service and ambulance who came willingly and very quickly to the aid of those impacted by this.

“That will be long remembered. That solidarity and that sense of strong community between the essential services.”

DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson thanked the emergency services as well as extending his sympathies to the friends and families of the bereaved.

“We want to extend our thanks to all the emergency services for their efforts to save life from both sides of the border including from counties Tyrone and Derry, all of whom joined in the rescue efforts,” he told his party conference in Belfast on Saturday afternoon

“This is what being a good neighbour is all about.

“I want to assure the people of Creeslough of our collective prayers, and I want them to know that they will continue to be in our thoughts in the days ahead.”