Recalling drowning tragedies of October 1927
By Tom Gillespie
IT is 95 years this week since 10 fishermen, including a 14-year-old, were drowned off Inishkea in north Mayo, another nine off Lacken, nine on Inisboffin and 26 in Cleggan Bay in a freak storm.
Deceived by the calm seas, 30 currachs from Inishkea, each with two fishermen, ignored the warnings of rapidly falling barometer pressure and rowed into the dark evening.
Sensing an imminent storm, 24 of the currachs headed back home.
The violent storm struck suddenly and 10 of the 12 men in the remaining six currachs were drowned, including Terry Reilly (14) and his father.
In her book The Cleggan Bay Disaster, author Marie Feeney wrote: In 1927 the odds were stacked against small fishing communities along the west coast of Ireland, and like neighbouring communities to the south, Innishkea had no lifeboat or life-saving apparatus.
Three trawlers, which had recently been purchased from the French, were docked at Blacksod for the winter months, due to the lack of a dock to harbour them at Innishkea. Had such facilities existed, the larger boats may have proved useful in saving lives on the night of the storm.
John and Anthony Meenaghan were amount the currach crews from Innishkea who, like those in Connamara, had set out for a night’s fishing on the evening of Friday, October 28. When the storm blew up, the two brothers used every ounce of their strength to struggle against the elements.
Their currach was tossed around by the angry, churning sea until they were finally driven ashore onto the beach at Tirrane and Aughleam, a distance of about five miles from the island. By then it was about nine o’clock.
The other crews were less fortunate, although at one time they came within a short distance of landing at Innishkea. They battled heroically against the tempest. Blinded by the spray that was whipped up in the westerly gale, they struggled in vain to maintain control of their boats. Their nets, laden with mackerel, were snatched away by the sea and later washed up on Tirrane and Aiughleam.
The body of William Reilly was taken to Blcksod, where it lay until the following Sunday in the house of a man named Michael Keane, awaiting interment at Faulmore, the nearest graveyard to the islands.
Despite a boisterous sea, grieving relatives of the deceased and missing crews made the journey to Blacksod to wake and bury their dead companions.
Sorrow also stalked thorough the fishing village of Lacken, in northwest Mayo, where the sea claimed the lives of nine men.
Early in Sunday, November 27, the bodies of two victims of the Innishkea fishing disaster were found near Blacksod. The burials took place after Mass in the cemetery at Faulmore, alongside those of their late comrades. Fr. Dodd, P.P., read the burial service.
The bodies could not be identified, but two islanders who crossed to the mainland recognised the clothing as that of Martin Meeneghan and John Monaghan.
The bodies of two more victims of the western tragedy were washed ashore during the week, one at Cross near Binghamstown and one at Blacksod. They were identified as those of Willie O’Reilly, north island, and John Monaghan, south island. The body of John McGinty was recovered on the Friday.
Sir John Lumsden, a member of the National Relief Fund Committee, wrote an article for The Irish Independent following a visit to the Innishkeas.
He wrote: I now attained my chief object, namely to interrogate the survivors of the victims of the storm.
They told me that on October 28, thirty currachs went out to fish in the smooth sea. A westerly gale sprang up about seven o’clock with extraordinary suddenness.
The lucky ones pulled for shelter of the island, or cut their nets away and bolted for shore, but six of the eight currachs - each manned by two men - were swamped, some of the crew being entangled in their nets, while one or two boats were driven on to the mainland, the occupants being dashed upon the rocks.
Two bedraggled fishermen struggled through the storm to the village of Faulmore to acquaint the cottagers with the fate of their comrades. The storm lasted a fortnight, no communication with the island was possible, and during one week nine bodies were washed up on the shore, and were buried in the little cemetery without the presence of one member of their families at the burials.
The feelings of those unfortunate families can be pictured - their dear ones dead, and their means of livelihood all gone.
Forty-eight men were drowned at Innishkea, Inishboffin and Cleggan, leaving behind 148 dependants.
The country was shocked, relief funds were quickly organised by the press, and a committee was appointed to deal with the West Coast Disaster National Relief Fund.
A sum of £36,000 was collected, many substantial subscriptions coming from America, Australia and the Colonies.
The circumstances of each family have been carefully looked into. The local clergy have been active in their inquiries, and their advice has been helpful.
As a first step, after the immediate needs of the victims were attended to the sums of £100 was allocated to each family. It was found that most of these were in debt to local traders, and although it seemed undesirable to take this into account, it was felt that it would be wise to wipe the slate clean.
Concerning conditions on the Innishkeas, he wrote: The islands of Innishkea, north and south, are about five miles distant, each island having one it about 25 cottages. The conditions there are truly pathetic.
The islands are composed of clay, sand and rock, without a foot of bog, and, consequently, all fuel has to be bought on the mainland.
The cottages are broken down, dark, airless-looking and damp. Corrugated iron or zinc roofs, which are mostly worn away, take the place of the old fashioned thatch.
The fisherman are a heart, weather-beaten crowd - then women and children mostly unhealthy looking, anaemic, rickety, and undernourished.
Their diet is largely composed of tea, bread, and potatoes, a very little milk and butter occasionally, and no green vegetables, but of course, fish always - a diet dangerously short of vitamins, fat and proteins.