FOREVER HAUNTED BY FINAL MOMENTS

Families tell of pain at 48 nightclub deaths

- DAVID YOUNG, GRAINNE NI AODHA

MOTHERS of two young people killed in Ireland's worst fire disaster have described their enduring grief and pain as they addressed a long-awaited inquest.

Forty-eight people died in the blaze at the Stardust Ballroom in Dublin in 1981.

The fire in Artane in the north of the city broke out in the early hours of Valentine's Day, 1981.

The new inquest, set to be the most extensive ever held in Ireland, began yesterday with coroner Dr Myra Cullinane reading out the names of all 48 victims.

Families were then given the opportunity to speak about their loved ones.

With the pen portraits delivered in alphabetic order, Gertrude Barrett, mother of Michael Barrett, was the first to address the 15 jury members.

She was followed by Betty Bissett, the mother of 18-year-old Carol Bissett. Michael Barrett was a 17-year-old apprentice plumber who was working in the nightclub on the night of the fire as an assistant DJ.

"Up to and including February 13, 1981, we were a happy family unit, with four children, doing regular things, living a regular life, Ms Barrett told the inquest.

"Little did I know that Friday 13 would be the last day of life as we knew it and that our lives would change catastrophically forever.