The father of a teenage girl killed in the Creeslough explosion has called for attention to be given to what kind of memorial should be placed at the scene of the tragedy.
Hugh Harper, whose daughter, Leona (14) died in the disaster, said plans for the development of the village should be delayed until it was decided what should be done at the scene of his daughter’s death.
Ten people, including two teenagers and a five-year-old girl, were killed when an Applegreen shopping and apartment complex collapsed following an explosion last October. It is believed the explosion was caused by gas. Investigations into the cause are still ongoing.
Eight months after the explosion, the scene of the disaster remains undeveloped with physical remnants of what happened still visible.
Mr Harper spoke out as plans by Donegal county council for the development of the village in wake of the deaths were put to local people. He told Highland Radio that all the “good work” being done for the village risked being undone by the undeveloped site. Mr Harper said all the “love and heart and blood, sweat and tears” being put into the development plan was being eclipsed by the explosion site.
“In a way, it’s a memorial (the Applegreen site) at the minute, but it’s not a fitting memorial; it’s something that’s reminding people, people who live local who pass it every day, who lost people in that building, who were injured in that building. My heart goes out to them,” he said.
Mr Harper said his family found it difficult to go to Creeslough because the remains of the shopping and apartment complex were still standing.
