Summary

  • The Omagh Bombing Inquiry is examining whether the single worst atrocity of the Troubles could have been prevented

  • Twenty-nine people, including a woman expecting twins, were murdered in the Real IRA attack on 15 August 1998

  • Thursday will be the seventh day of hearings

  • The inquiry hears 17-year-old Samantha McFarland had been due to be a bridesmaid in September 1998

  • Sean McGrath was a businessman who was killed when the bomb exploded in the street where he was born 61 years earlier

  • Elizabeth "Libbi" Rush, who ran a business in Market Street, is described as the "moral compass" of her family

  1. 'A gentle giant'published at 12:13 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    Brian McCrory's pen portrait was written by his daughter Louise McCrory and is being read by a solicitor.

    Brian is described by his daughter as a "gentle giant"

    "My dad was not just a name on a list, he was a loving husband, amazing father, uncle, college and neighbour."

    "He had a kindness and a gentle spirit that anyone who knew him experienced."

    She added that the 54 year-old had "a beautiful warm comfortable smile that made everyone feel safe."

    "We should have been giving much longer to share and experience our lives with this much-loved man."

  2. Final tributes of the daypublished at 12:04 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    The inquiry has resumed and we will be hearing a pen portrait of Brian McCrory.

    He was in the town to buy visit the chemist when he was caught up in the blast and his son helped at the hospital after the bombing, unaware his father had been killed.

    He is the third and final victim we will hear tributes to today.

    Brian McCrory, he has grey hair and is wearing a grey suit jacket over a white shirtImage source, Family handout
  3. 'The cusp of a new life'published at 11:34 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    Lord Turnbull, the inquiry chairman, says Bridie Marlow's statement sets out the heartbreak of another mother whose firstborn child was killed in the Omagh bombing.

    "In the way we have now heard of so many times, Jolene was a 17-year-old on the cusp of a new and exciting life who had so much ahead of her," he says.

    He says he has no doubt Jolene would have pursued a successful career as a sports physiotherapist.

    The inquiry is now taking another short break.

  4. 'Achieved so much in her short life'published at 11:28 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    Bridie's statement says Jolene "was a loving daughter".

    "A caring sibling to her four siblings, a role model for her schools, a great team player for her teams, a much loved granddaughter and a friend to all that knew her.

    "Whilst she achieved so much in her short life, she was denied the chance to reach her full potential."

  5. 'Denied all of her hopes and dreams'published at 11:25 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    Jolene was set to go to university in Belfast for the next chapter of her "education and life".

    "We always secretly dreaded the thought of Jolene being in Belfast in case the Troubles would flare up," her mother says.

    "Little did we know then, that our hometown of Omagh, where Jolene has attended school, had a part time job, was learning to drive, socialised and shopped, would be the actual place where she would be denied all of her hopes and dreams of her bright future."

  6. 'Exemplary student'published at 11:20 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    Jolene's mother's statement says her daughter was a "very popular member of staff" in her part-time summer job.

    She was described as an "exemplary student through her school days".

    "I couldn't help but think, this is it, our eldest child was now ready to start her next chapter in the education of life," her mother says.

  7. 'Her future was so bright'published at 11:14 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    The tribute to Jolene is being read out on behalf of Bridie Marlow, Jolene's mother, by a lawyer.

    It begins with remembering Jolene as a child.

    "When she received her 11+ results, she was only 10 years old."

    She was a year younger than her peers at secondary school as a result and excelled at sport.

    "Jolene's future was so bright, with a desire to become a sports physio therapist," her mother says.

    Before her death she had just began driving lessons.

  8. Inquiry resumespublished at 11:08 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    The inquiry has come back from a short break and will now hear tributes to 17-year-old Jolene Marlow.

    A talented Gaelic footballer, her team had won the Tyrone county championship 10 days earlier.

    She was buried on the day that her A-level results came out, confirming her university place to study physiotherapy.

    Jolene Marlow, a teenage girl with shoulder-length brown hair, a black dress and gold necklaceImage source, Family handout
  9. 'Another young person cruelly taken'published at 10:49 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    The inquiry's chairman Lord Turnbull thanks the Logue family for their remarks, saying: "Brenda herself was obviously a well liked and socially minded individual."

    "Although Brenda's death represents yet another young person cruelly taken from her family, it is a real tribute to her that her former secondary school has a memorial cup in her honour, as well as a GAA tournament in her honour.

    "A further aspect of the tragedy was that her mother Mary was with her when she was killed and she lived with the pain of that up until her own untimely death last year."

    The inquiry is now taking a short break.

  10. 'Our world fell apart'published at 10:45 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    Mary Logue's statement says 15 August 1998 "has defined my family's existence" and that her family "will always be known as 'that family'".

    She describes how the impact of Brenda's death affected generations of the family as well as friends - "those around me, who had to watch from the outside as our world fell apart".

    Mrs Logue's statement concludes by saying that when she received her cancer diagnosis the consultants were "baffled" that it was not the worst news she had ever received.

    "Losing a child is every parent's worst nightmare and I have lived that nightmare every day for the past 26 years."

  11. Bomb aftermath 'would haunt my dreams'published at 10:42 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    Mr Logue says the last thing his mother remembered of Brenda was her ponytail swishing as she went out the door of the SD Kells clothing shop in Omagh.

    "The blast threw me against the wall and knocked me unconscious, or so I was told. When I came around I knew in my heart she was gone," Mrs Logue's statement reads.

    "It was like a scene from a disaster movie.

    "The things I saw that day would haunt my dreams."

  12. Mother figurepublished at 10:37 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    Cathal Logue opened his remarks by saying that their mother Mary died from cancer, which is something she references in her statement.

    "As I lie here battling cancer, and although I'm doted on by my sons and my siblings, I can't help but wonder that if Brenda had been here, is that how it would have played out?"

    She wonders if Brenda would have encouraged her to go to the doctor sooner.

    "She would know what to do, know what to say, know how to comfort my boys.

    "She could be the mother figure when I go.

    "Would have I been in this bad health if I hadn't lost her?"

  13. 'Never got the chance to see her fall in love'published at 10:33 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    Mr Logue says his mother missed the chance to see Brenda fall in love.

    "To see her walk down the aisle, go wedding dress shopping with my only daughter, see her have children, become a maternal grandmother," read Brenda's mother's tribute.

    He continues that the family have lived their lives trying to cope with her murder.

    "My 13 grandchildren grieve an aunt they never got to meet."

    He continues, "how can a child comprehend" how she died.

  14. Teaching dreampublished at 10:28 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    "I have been robbed of so many things," Brenda's mother's tribute says.

    "We received her AS level results on the day of her wake. She had achieved the grades she needed to complete her second year."

    Brenda wanted to become a PE teacher and "she would have followed that dream."

  15. A talented goalkeeperpublished at 10:24 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    The tribute says Brenda's love of football stemmed from her brothers.

    "Cathal and Sean made her stay outside for hours upon hours to make the teams fair. She would often be the goalkeeper," Mr Logue says on behalf of their mother.

    This led her down the path to her "short but very talented" Gaelic football career.

    "She was a natural goalkeeper who was strong and tall and had no fears," he says.

    He tells the inquiry she was called up to the Tyrone senior football panel and the junior championship cup in Tyrone was later named after her.

  16. 'Always a shepherd and never a sheep'published at 10:20 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    We start with tributes to Brenda Logue from her brother Cathal.

    He says their mother Mary passed away recently, but they captured her thoughts for her tribute to Brenda in the statement he will now read out.

    Sitting next to him is his brother Karl.

    He describes Brenda as a "sweet natured girl".

    The inquiry heard how Brenda went to the secondary school at Dean Maguirc College in Carrickmore, where there, Mr Logue says, she fought and won the right for girls to wear trousers.

    Her argument: "It was unfair for the girls to be cold in skirts."

    "She was always a shepherd and never a sheep," Mr Logue says.

  17. Good morningpublished at 09:55 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

    Three people in a photo. Women on the left has brown hair and brown eyes. The man has grey hair and a smile. The woman on the right ha brown hair

    Hello and welcome back to BBC News NI's live coverage of the Omagh Bombing Inquiry as the sixth day of hearings begins.

    The public inquiry was set up by the government to examine whether the 1998 explosion could have been prevented by the UK authorities.

    The hearings will resume today with more personal testimonies from families who lost loved ones in the Real IRA attack.

    Today we are expected to here from:

    • Cathal Logue who will commemorate 17-year-old victim Brenda Logue
    • The Commemoration of 17-year-old Jolene Marlow on behalf of Bridie Marlow
    • The Commemoration of 54-year-old Brian McCrory on behalf of Louise McCrory

    The inquiry is due to begin at 10:00 GMT.

  18. Good afternoonpublished at 16:14 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February

    The inquiry has ended for the day and we will now pause our live coverage.

    We have heard tributes to Aiden Gallagher, a mechanic who was killed in the bomb.

    His father Michael spoke of how he was the "joker of the pack" and had a wide group of friends.

    Next we heard from Stanley McCombe, whose wife Ann McCombe was fatally injured.

    He said: "Ann was a wonderful and very, very caring person".

    The inquiry then heard from relatives of Fred and Bryan White.

    Edith White, wife of Fred and mother of Bryan, said she did not understand "why they had to be murdered".

    Finally, the inquiry heard heard a statement from Mark Hawkes and Mandy Walker, whose mum Olive Hawkes was killed in the bomb.

    They said she was "the glue that made the family so close".

    Today's live page was edited by Luke Sproule and was written by Holly Fleck, Claire Quinn and Eimear Flanagan.

    More on today's proceedings can be found here.

    Our live coverage will resume tomorrow when the inquiry sits again at 10:00 GMT.

  19. 'So many affected were caring people'published at 16:04 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February

    Inquiry chairman Lord Turnball concludes the day by thanking Mark and Mandy for the pen portrait of their mother.

    “It is something of a hallmark by those affected by this atrocity that they were caring people who saw value in their own local communities," he says.

    "Like so many of the other victims of this atrocity, Mrs Hawkes contributed to the wellbeing of her society.

    “From what her daughter and son have said in their statement, it is obvious that her good influence has stayed with her family.”

  20. 'Our family was torn apart'published at 16:02 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February

    After their mother's body was formally identified, the siblings say it made the "harsh reality" made it even more "unbearable".

    The say they received some comfort after meeting the police officer who cared for their mother after the bomb and hearing she had been given "some dignity".

    "Our little family was torn apart on 15 August 1998 and the trauma in the manner that we lost our mum is always with us," they say.

    Mark and Mandy say it took a long time to recall the happy memories that were tainted by the trauma.

    But now they now say they can find happiness in the good memories they have.