Stardust families renew inquiry pleas after review points to earlier fire deaths

Relatives of victims of the 1981 Stardust fire in Artane, Dublin, have renewed their plea for a fresh inquiry after a review of files revealed that up to five people were already dead far from where the blaze was originally thought to have started and before flames were seen there.

The families are now demanding the full report of the 1981 tribunal of inquiry and a 2009 review be withdrawn from public record, saying both ignored or overlooked vital evidence that would have uncovered the truth behind the disaster.

A new analysis of investigation files points to testimony by an employee at the nightclub who saw four young men apparently “sleeping” in an alcove 60ft from the seats where the 1981 tribunal concluded the fire, which killed 48 people nd injured 120, was deliberately started.