Helplessness, terror, courage, compassion and kindness

Inquiry into how Real IRA killed 29 in 1998 Omagh blast and acts of heroism

- BY CHRIS HUGHES

GRIEVING relatives of Omagh bombing victims are hoping a major inquiry into the Northern Ireland massacre will finally bring closure.

The Real IRA car blast killed 29 people including two toddlers and a mum pregnant with twins and injured 220 others on August 15, 1998.

A telephone warning to police resulted in victims being herded towards the bomb and not away from it.

Security services were tipped off about the device 44 minutes before the explosion but not where it was planted on a Saturday afternoon full of shoppers.

The long-awaited inquiry finally began yesterday, with Paul Greaney KC explaining there are two main themes from the personal statements of victims and witnesses.

He said: "The first is the devastation and carnage the bomb caused. Phrases such as 'mayhem, horrendous and pandemonium' are used.

"People recall harrowing sounds, smells, and the feeling of helpless- ness, terror.