The inquests into the deaths of the 48 young people who died in the Stardust fire in Artane, Dublin in 1981 feature pen portraits of each of the deceased by, read by bereaved family members. Find all of the portraits and more coverage here.
I am here today to represent Dave on behalf of his late parents, Paddy and Bernie, his brother Pat, and wider extended family.
Dave, the younger of two sons, lived with his parents in their family home in Beaumont. Dave was a good-humoured, sociable and typical 18-year-old. He loved dancing and going to the disco. He was a bit of a rocker, mad into the Rolling Stones. This was reflected in his love for playing the guitar, his sense of style and the Jagger swagger that he had about him.
He enjoyed going out for a drink and a game of darts, which he often played with his brother. Dave worked in O’Neill’s Shoes on Talbot Street. He loved working there and dealing with the customers. He never missed a day of work and would often joke that, if he came into some money, he’d open his own shoe shop.
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He was in a relationship and, as a young man, he had all of life’s possibilities ahead of him.
The night of the Stardust fire, Dave came home from work, like any other night, and had a shower and something to eat. He had a few drinks with his friends before heading out.
‘Panic’
My nanny always said she remembered him saying goodbye as he left. My Mam and Dad were supposed to be heading to the Stardust too, but they were fortunate enough to have a bit of a falling out that evening, with the result that they didn’t go.
For the Flood family home in Beaumont, it was like any other Friday until the house phone rang later that night with word that the Stardust was on fire.
Panic quickly set in and, naturally, my Granda and my Da went looking for Dave. Searching desperately, they went to the hospitals to check if Dave had been taken there but they couldn’t find him.
Another phone call came, this time asking for family to come to the mortuary. My Granda and my Da and Mr Roche from next door went to the morgue. As my Da and Granda were overcome with grief from the situation, Mr Roche took on the burden of identifying Dave’s body for the family.
The trauma of Dave’s death left an imprint on his family and those close to him. My Nanny and Granda lost their youngest son. My Da lost his only brother. It also robbed Dave of the chance to go on to have his own family and experience being a father. The devastating way in which Dave died still has an enormous impact on his family. In the years afterwards, Dave’s memory was never far from our minds.
Every February, on Dave’s anniversary we went to his graveside and listened to stories about him.
I inherited Dave’s records and when I listen to them, I wish that I had got to know my uncle before his life was cut short. May he rest in peace.