Summary

  • Ten people are dead after a huge explosion in the Republic of Ireland

  • The blast destroyed a service station in Creeslough, County Donegal

  • The incident happened in the village on Friday afternoon

  • Emergency services searched through the night for victims and survivors

  • Eight people who were hurt in the explosion are in hospital

  • Taoiseach Micheál Martin attends remembrance service in Creeslough

  1. 'Huge input from Donegal community'published at 15:10 British Summer Time 8 October 2022

    Garry Martin

    Garry Martin of Donegal County Council says there was a "huge input" from people in the community in the response to the explosion.

    "[They] attended in huge numbers yesterday... and contributed so much to our efforts there."

  2. 'No further casualties expected'published at 15:07 British Summer Time 8 October 2022

    Garda Supt Liam Geraghty confirms that 10 people have died in the explosion at the Creeslough service station.

    Supt David Kelly

    He says: "The emergency services continue a search and recovery operation at the site this afternoon.

    "But based on the information available to An Garda Síochána, at this time it is not expected that there will be any further casualties located and there are no outstanding reports of unaccounted for persons."

  3. Emergency services give more details at press conferencepublished at 15:02 British Summer Time 8 October 2022

    Emergency services representatives speaking at a press conference

    Irish emergency services are providing an update on what's happened at Creeslough.

    Garda Supt David Kelly, Garry Martin from Donegal County Council, and JJ McGowan, the chief ambulance officer for the north-west of Ireland, are speaking to the press.

  4. Ten people dead after Creeslough explosionpublished at 14:50 British Summer Time 8 October 2022
    Breaking

    An Garda Síochána (the Irish police force) has confirmed that 10 people have died after the explosion in Creeslough.

    It said four men, three women, two teenagers and one young girl had lost their lives.

    Read more here: Ten dead after explosion at Donegal service station

  5. 'They listened for signs of anyone trapped'published at 14:48 British Summer Time 8 October 2022

    Chris Page
    BBC News Ireland correspondent

    A tragedy on this scale is really something this tight-knit rural community could never have imagined.

    There is such a sense of disbelief in Creeslough.

    All that is left of the shop and the flats above is a crumpled mess of rubble.

    The emergency services worked through the night.

    The damaged flats behind the Applegreen service station in Creeslough where the explosion happenedImage source, PA Media

    At times they asked for complete silence around them while they listened for signs of anyone trapped.

    The cause of the explosion is still not known but gardaí are working on the theory it was perhaps a gas explosion.

    Locals say it happened at a time when the shop would have been busy because local schools had just finished for the day.

    It will be a major operation throughout the course of the day to try to find out if there are any more survivors here or indeed if anyone else has lost their life.

  6. What we know so farpublished at 14:41 British Summer Time 8 October 2022

    As we wait to hear the latest from Creeslough, here's what we know so far.

    This morning gardaí (Irish police) confirmed that nine people had died as a result of the explosion at the village's Applegreen service station.

    Emergency services staff at the scene of the explosion in CreesloughImage source, PA Media

    Emergency services are still at the scene but the search operation is winding down.

    A press conference is expected to take place shortly.

    Read more: Nine dead after Donegal explosion

  7. Nine dead after explosion in Irish villagepublished at 14:31 British Summer Time 8 October 2022

    Hello and welcome to our coverage from Creeslough in County Donegal in the Republic of Ireland, where at least nine people have died in a huge explosion.

    Creeslough explosion

    Here are the key details so far:

    • The blast happened at an Applegreen service station in the village on Friday
    • At least eight people are in hospital
    • The cause of the explosion remains unknown
    • Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Micheál Martin says it is an "unspeakable tragedy"
    • Emergency services are due to hold a press conference shortly