Carrickmines Fire: United in their heartsick silence, thousands try to help family bear loss

As the coffins of five of the 10 victims of the Carrickmines fire tragedy travelled down the aisle at their funeral Mass, the hands of mourners reached out again, feeling for tangible evidence that the unimaginable was real, writes Caroline O’Doherty

Silver for the adults, white for the little children, the handles to the sides gleamed, the crucifixes on the lids shone. They had been chosen and handled with loving, heartbroken, care; each conveyed in a separate hearse, their tragic convoy followed by a fleet of 10 funeral cars.

Beside Tara Gilbert’s casket was a floral arrangement spelling out her name in pink blossoms. For nine-year-old Jodie and four-year-old Kelsey there were angels and halos, and drawings of baby clothes for the unborn sibling they had been so excited to hear their mammy was expecting.