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| Widow 'couldn't accept' deaths of husband and son | Widow 'couldn't accept' deaths of husband and son |
| (31 minutes later) | |
| Fred and his son Bryan had returned home from holiday the day before the bomb | Fred and his son Bryan had returned home from holiday the day before the bomb |
| A woman whose husband and son died in the Omagh bombing has told an inquiry she drove around looking for them for years because she could not accept their deaths. | A woman whose husband and son died in the Omagh bombing has told an inquiry she drove around looking for them for years because she could not accept their deaths. |
| Edith White's 60-year-old husband Fred and Bryan, 27, had gone into the County Tyrone town to shop on the day of the 1998 attack. | Edith White's 60-year-old husband Fred and Bryan, 27, had gone into the County Tyrone town to shop on the day of the 1998 attack. |
| The Real IRA drove a car bomb into the centre of Omagh which exploded, killing 29 people including a woman pregnant with twins. | The Real IRA drove a car bomb into the centre of Omagh which exploded, killing 29 people including a woman pregnant with twins. |
| Mrs White is among the victims' relatives who are giving personal testimonies about their loss at the start of a public inquiry into the bombing. | Mrs White is among the victims' relatives who are giving personal testimonies about their loss at the start of a public inquiry into the bombing. |
| Fred and Bryan White had just returned from holiday the day before and the inquiry was shown a photograph of them smiling and relaxed on the final day of that trip. | Fred and Bryan White had just returned from holiday the day before and the inquiry was shown a photograph of them smiling and relaxed on the final day of that trip. |
| Within 24 hours they would both be dead. | Within 24 hours they would both be dead. |
| Belongings untouched | Belongings untouched |
| "I just couldn't accept that they were gone. I don't understand why they had to be murdered," Mrs White said. | "I just couldn't accept that they were gone. I don't understand why they had to be murdered," Mrs White said. |
| "For a number of years after the bomb, I would still go in the car to look for them, thinking that they must be somewhere. | "For a number of years after the bomb, I would still go in the car to look for them, thinking that they must be somewhere. |
| "Whenever I saw a black Ford car I would look to see if it's the number plate of Fred's car." | "Whenever I saw a black Ford car I would look to see if it's the number plate of Fred's car." |
| She added that she left their personal belongings, like toothbrushes and diaries, untouched for many years after the bomb. | She added that she left their personal belongings, like toothbrushes and diaries, untouched for many years after the bomb. |
| "I regularly would have changed the sheets on Bryan's bed. But they never came home and the silence is still there." | "I regularly would have changed the sheets on Bryan's bed. But they never came home and the silence is still there." |
| Mrs White said she visited their grave twice a day for many years. | Mrs White said she visited their grave twice a day for many years. |
| She said she has felt anger over the years because of the "delay and failure" to get answers about how the atrocity could have happened. | She said she has felt anger over the years because of the "delay and failure" to get answers about how the atrocity could have happened. |
| "I am lost without my husband and son. I can still picture Bryan on the day of the bomb and telling me he would be back in a while. | "I am lost without my husband and son. I can still picture Bryan on the day of the bomb and telling me he would be back in a while. |
| "Fred was my rock and I loved him dearly." | "Fred was my rock and I loved him dearly." |
| Bomb was 'declaration of war' on civilians | Bomb was 'declaration of war' on civilians |
| Aiden Gallagher was 21 when he was murdered by the Real IRA | Aiden Gallagher was 21 when he was murdered by the Real IRA |
| Campaigner Michael Gallagher, whose son was killed in the bomb, said the attack was a declaration of war by the Real IRA on an unsuspecting civilian population for their own political aims. | Campaigner Michael Gallagher, whose son was killed in the bomb, said the attack was a declaration of war by the Real IRA on an unsuspecting civilian population for their own political aims. |
| His son 21-year-old son Aiden had gone into the town to buy jeans when he was caught up in the blast. | His son 21-year-old son Aiden had gone into the town to buy jeans when he was caught up in the blast. |
| Mr Gallagher said the dissident republican group described themselves as "freedom fighters" but they were far from it. | Mr Gallagher said the dissident republican group described themselves as "freedom fighters" but they were far from it. |
| He told the inquiry: "They are freedom takers, the victims have ended up being the freedom fighters." | He told the inquiry: "They are freedom takers, the victims have ended up being the freedom fighters." |
| Aiden worked as a mechanic and was fascinated with cars and aircraft. | Aiden worked as a mechanic and was fascinated with cars and aircraft. |
| "He had a very wide group of friends and I'm very proud to say that we live in a country where there's a lot of division and bigotry on both sides, but we never allowed that to penetrate our family," Mr Gallagher told the inquiry. | "He had a very wide group of friends and I'm very proud to say that we live in a country where there's a lot of division and bigotry on both sides, but we never allowed that to penetrate our family," Mr Gallagher told the inquiry. |
| "We chose our friends because of the contents of their heart, not because of their religion or their politics." | "We chose our friends because of the contents of their heart, not because of their religion or their politics." |
| The inquiry heard the Gallagher family had previously suffered a bereavement 14 years earlier as a result of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. | The inquiry heard the Gallagher family had previously suffered a bereavement 14 years earlier as a result of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. |
| Michael Gallagher's younger brother Hugh was murdered by the IRA in 1984. | Michael Gallagher's younger brother Hugh was murdered by the IRA in 1984. |
| The Omagh bomb exploded four months after the signing of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement - a peace deal designed to bring an end to 30 years of violence. | The Omagh bomb exploded four months after the signing of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement - a peace deal designed to bring an end to 30 years of violence. |
| 'The first atrocity of peacetime' | 'The first atrocity of peacetime' |
| Michael Gallagher at the inquiry, alongside his daughter Cat | Michael Gallagher at the inquiry, alongside his daughter Cat |
| Mr Gallagher said the timing of the bombing was "absolutely cruel". | Mr Gallagher said the timing of the bombing was "absolutely cruel". |
| "People often describe the Omagh bomb as the worst of the Troubles, it was actually the first atrocity of peacetime," he said. | "People often describe the Omagh bomb as the worst of the Troubles, it was actually the first atrocity of peacetime," he said. |
| Aiden had gone in to Omagh town centre to buy new jeans. His father said his last words were: "I won't be long." | Aiden had gone in to Omagh town centre to buy new jeans. His father said his last words were: "I won't be long." |
| Michael Gallagher heard the blast and knew it was a bomb. | Michael Gallagher heard the blast and knew it was a bomb. |
| After several journeys into town, to the hospital, he was eventually taken to a makeshift morgue where he identified his son's body. | After several journeys into town, to the hospital, he was eventually taken to a makeshift morgue where he identified his son's body. |
| His "greatest concern" driving home as dawn was breaking, was how he was going to tell his family that Aiden would not be coming home. | His "greatest concern" driving home as dawn was breaking, was how he was going to tell his family that Aiden would not be coming home. |
| "That was extremely painful and difficult. In the end I didn't really need to say anything." | "That was extremely painful and difficult. In the end I didn't really need to say anything." |
| 'I miss my mother every day' | |
| The late Ann McCombe was described by her husband Stanley as the kindest person he knew | The late Ann McCombe was described by her husband Stanley as the kindest person he knew |
| The husband of Omagh bomb victim Ann McCombe described her as a "wonderful and very, very caring person" during the inquiry. | The husband of Omagh bomb victim Ann McCombe described her as a "wonderful and very, very caring person" during the inquiry. |
| "I suppose that is why I fell in love and married her. I think she was the kindest hearted person that I have ever known and she cared for everybody." | "I suppose that is why I fell in love and married her. I think she was the kindest hearted person that I have ever known and she cared for everybody." |
| Stanley McCombe and his son Clive were at a pipe band championship in Scotland when news of the explosion broke. | Stanley McCombe and his son Clive were at a pipe band championship in Scotland when news of the explosion broke. |
| Mr McCombe described their nightmare journey home. | Mr McCombe described their nightmare journey home. |
| "When we arrived home on the Sunday you could feel death in the air... It was a very strange feeling, everything was so still, you did not hear a dog barking or a car and there was nobody about, everybody had just disappeared." | "When we arrived home on the Sunday you could feel death in the air... It was a very strange feeling, everything was so still, you did not hear a dog barking or a car and there was nobody about, everybody had just disappeared." |
| Clive McCombe said all of their lives changed after the bomb. | Clive McCombe said all of their lives changed after the bomb. |
| "I miss my mother every day. I try as best as I can to live life in a way to make her proud," he said. | "I miss my mother every day. I try as best as I can to live life in a way to make her proud," he said. |
| "My mother would always say: "If you can be anything, be kind." | "My mother would always say: "If you can be anything, be kind." |
| Stanley McCombe also said in his statement that the aftermath of Dame Nuala O'Loan's report where she found the Omagh bombing had been preventable, was "unbearable". | Stanley McCombe also said in his statement that the aftermath of Dame Nuala O'Loan's report where she found the Omagh bombing had been preventable, was "unbearable". |
| "It became obvious to me and many of the families that we as victims were secondary." | "It became obvious to me and many of the families that we as victims were secondary." |
| He said it had made him more "resolute" in his desire for a public inquiry. | He said it had made him more "resolute" in his desire for a public inquiry. |
| Timeline of events |