Widow and sons survive blast

A WIDOW and her four adult sons had a miraculous escape from death early yesterday when a pipe bomb exploded after it was thrown through the front window of a house in Rathkeale, Co Limerick.

A second pipe bomb which was left outside the house was made safe by members of the army’s explosive ordnance disposal team which travelled to the scene from Collins Barracks in Cork.

Gardaí believe the attack which was carried out at around 4am may be connected to a feud involving members of Rathkeale’s large Traveller community.

In the past week shots were fired into an occupied caravan and a jeep was petrol-bombed.

The bomb attack was carried out on the home of 57-year-old widow, Mary Anne Hegarty. Four of her adult sons were staying in the detached house at Ballywilliam having come home for the Christmas holiday.

The downstairs section of the house was badly damaged.

One neighbour who asked not to be named said: “I spoke with Mrs Hegarty this morning and she was very shaken. She said had anybody been downstairs they would have been killed. She said they heard the front door being smashed in before the explosion.”

When gardaí got to the scene, they discovered a second, unexploded pipe bomb outside the house.

Supt Joe Roe said they were not ruling out the possibility that the attack may be linked to other recent incidents in the town, involving members of the Traveller community.

He said: “The house is one of a number in that part of the town owned by members of the Traveller community. This is a very serious development.”

A local traveller family with links to a Limerick gang are suspected of waging an extortion campaign against some of Rathkeale’s wealthy Traveller traders. They are understood to be demanding sums of between €10,000 and €20,000.

On Christmas Day the family are believed to have been involved in an attack in which a shotgun blast was fired into a caravan in which a woman and her two children were sleeping. It is believed her family had been unable to pay an extortion demand of €20,000.

The gang are known to have access to pipe bombs, which are supplied by former paramilitaries. However, Supt Roe said there was nothing to suggest the bomb attack had any links to Limerick city gangs.

He said they have set up an incident room at Rathkeale Garda Station.

The scene was cordoned off as Garda forensic experts worked at the scene.

Army spokesman Comdt Rory Sheering said their personnel got to the scene at 7.30am and dealt with one viable explosive device which they handed over to gardaí for forensic examination. He said the scene was declared safe at 9am.