Bid to find sister of accident victim

SOUTH AFRICAN police were last night trying to locate the sister of one of the three men who died in weekend tragedies in County Limerick.

The first of three funerals for the victims took place yesterday.

More than 1,000 mourners attended the burial of 21-year-old Billy Sheahan, from Askeaton, who died in a single car accident on Friday night.

Two family friends, Niall Fitzpatrick and Tom Liston, were electrocuted on Sunday evening as they prepared a field car park for mourners attending Billy Sheahan’s wake which took place in the family home at Boulaglass, Askeaton.

Niall Fitzpatrick, 36, from Broadford and Tom Liston, 41, from Croagh/Granagh, died instantly when an elevated floodlight metal heist hit an overhead power line as they were moving it from one part of the field to another.

Robert Liston, Tom’s 16-year-old son, and his older brother Séamus, in his late 40s, were injured and are in a stable condition at the Mid Western Regional Hospital. Last night, efforts to contact Niall Fitzpatrick’s sister, Martina, were being made in South Africa where she is on her honeymoon with Ray O’Connell.

Niall Fitzpatrick was on his way home to Broadford after a weekend away when he broke his journey to sympathise with the bereaved Sheahan family

Niall was a friend of the Sheahans and a supplier to their grocery store in Askeaton.

“He was travelling home to Broadford, but on Sunday afternoon, on learning of the death of Billy Sheahan he headed straight for the Sheahan home near Askeaton to sympathise with the family,” said a friend.

More than 1,000 people yesterday attended a Memorial Service at the Limerick Christian Centre for Billy Sheahan.

During the service, his mother, Ita Sheahan, revealed that Billy had said he would die young.

She said: “I love all my children. He was the one I loved deeply and he loved me.”

Mrs Sheahan said some time ago after giving an interview on local radio about her Christian values, Billy texted her saying how proud he was of her. He asked her to organise a talk for his friends and that he would bring the crowd.

“We never got around to doing that. But today was the day, the day of his funeral. Looking at all the young people, Billy brought the crowd,” she said.

Her husband Willie said their son was a precious gift and they did not know why God had called him.

Billy is survived by five sisters and two brothers.

His coffin, draped in the Askeaton soccer colours, was brought for burial to Beagh Castle cemetery, Ballysteen, near the banks of the Shannon.