6,000 back bid to name bridge after missing Fiona

More than 6,000 people signed a petition in the space of a week calling for a new footbridge to be named after missing Offaly woman Fiona Pender.

The 25-year-old hairdresser and part-time model was seven months pregnant when she vanished from her apartment in Tullamore in Aug 1996.

Her mother Josephine and brother John are backing the campaign to name the replacement footbridge on the Grand Canal in Tullamore in her memory. Josephine hopes the bridge can keep the memory of her daughter and unborn grandchild alive.

The bridge replaces a wooden one that Fiona used regularly.

It links Tullamore town and Connolly Park, where she was brought up and her mother still lives.

The public campaign began after local Sinn Féin councillor Brendan Killeavy withdrew a town council motion proposing the measure last month, amid concerns over the level of support among councillors for the proposal.

Campaigners are now hoping to put pressure on the council through the petition. They are calling door-to-door and will be collecting signatures in shopping centres at the weekend.

A ‘Fiona Pender Bridge Campaign’ Facebook page has been created and a new campaign committee was formed on Tuesday night.

Construction of the new footbridge is due to be completed in July.