Tragic end: Billy dies before being given chance to live

THE Kerryman who touched the hearts of Irish people with his impassioned plea to be allowed a lung transplant has died while awaiting a suitable donor.

"I refuse to die without a chance to live. I think that's the least that I deserve," were the haunting words of Billy Burke last April when describing his desperate situation.

The 29-year-old from Killorglin, who had Cystic Fibrosis, died yesterday in the Mater Hospital in Dublin, still awaiting a donor seven months after his plea.