RSS
News


Home Page > News > Christmas heartache for families of 242 Irish who died overseas in 2009

Blogs


comment on article Make a comment
print this article Print
email this articleE-mail

Christmas heartache for families of 242 Irish who died overseas in 2009

By
ANTOINETTE KELLY,
Irish Central.com

Published Tuesday, December 22, 2009, 7:10 AM
Updated Tuesday, December 22, 2009, 11:13 AM

 

Bookmark and Share

Irish doctors Jane Deasy, Eithne Walls and Aisling Butler, presumed dead in Air France disaster
Irish doctors Jane Deasy, Eithne Walls and Aisling Butler, lost in Air France disaster

This Christmas will be a heartbreaking affair for the families and friends of the 242 Irish people who died overseas this year.

The Department of Foreign affairs says the number of people who died in tragic circumstances while away for holidays or work was the highest number ever recorded.

Among the Irish citizens who lost their lives were the three young doctors on board the doomed Air France plane which plunged into the Atlantic in June, Fr Jeremiah Roche who was macheted to death in Kenya and buried yesterday and Michael Dwyer who was gunned down in Bolivia in April.

The majority of the 242 deaths were from natural causes or accidents such as drowning. The numbers are a sharp increase from 204 in 2008 and 150 in 2007.

Overall, the Department of Foreign Affairs says that last year was "set to be one of the busiest on record," as they dealt with 1,200 incidents involving Irish overseas.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin said: "The significant increase in deaths abroad and other incidents involving our citizens over the past 12 months is a reminder how important it is for all of us to take precautions before travelling."

He said: "As we approach Christmas our thoughts are of course will all those who have had to deal with a sudden bereavement over the past year."

Three college friends, Aisling Butler, 26, from County Tipperary; Jane Deasy, 27, from Dublin; and Eithne Walls, 29, from Co Down perished when their Air France Airbus disappeared over the Atlantic on a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris in June.

Michael Dwyer, 24, was shot dead by Bolivian police in a Santa Cruz hotel. The Bolivian government claimed he had been part of a plot to assassinate President Evo Morales, a claim that Mr Dwyer’s family said was preposterous.

print this article Print
email this articleE-mail


Be the first to make a comment.

It may take several minutes for your comment to appear.


Click to learn more from DiscoverIreland.com.
IrishCentral Mobile QR code


Connect to IrishCentral with your Facebook account

or sign-in directly

Welcome to IrishCentral!
Please provide the following information in order to create your account

Username:
E-Mail Address:
Password:
Confirm Password:
I agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy


Welcome to IrishCentral!
All we need is the following information and you will be part of the #1 Irish community in the US

E-Mail Address:
First select a unique username:
Username:
Now choose a password:
Password:
Confirm Password:
I agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy
Thank you!

Just one more step and you will be part of the largest Irish community in America! Tell us a little more about you to start enjoying all the features of IrishCentral.

Additional Information:

First Name:
Last Name:
Date of Birth:
Zip:
Gender: Male  Female 
Country:
Degree of Irishness:
Household Income:
Level of Education:

Subscribe to our newsletters:

The Best of IrishCentral - Daily Newsletter
Special Offers from our sponsors

or
Skip

You can edit your information at any time, just go to "my account" when you're logged in.

Log into IrishCentral with your Facebook account

or sign-in directly

E-Mail:
Password:
 Remember me Forgot my password