A mother-of-two who was murdered in the Omagh bomb could only be identified by her fingerprints due to the extent of her injuries, an inquiry into the atrocity has heard.
Olive Hawkes (60) was on a routine shopping trip in the town centre when the Real IRA bomb exploded, killing her and 28 others, including a mother carrying unborn twins.
As the inquiry continued on Tuesday, solicitor Beth McMullan read a statement on behalf of the victim’s children, Mark and Mandy.
The siblings recalled how their mother “was always caring for her family” and had filled their childhoods with “wonderful memories”.
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“Mum was very much the boss of the home, and Dad was very content with this position. In so many ways, they were really a perfect partnership,” they said.
“As children we wanted for nothing and have wonderful memories of having loving, attentive parents. And there was always laughter in our home.
“Mummy did Daddy’s books for the farm and was also very much a hands-on farmer’s wife who equally loved caring for the livestock and land.
“She also loved her style and therefore shopping trips to Omagh were a regular occurrence. She was also a great baker and loved gardening.
“In essence, she was the glue that made the family so close and we were truly spoiled having her as our mum.”
Mark recalled the moment his mother left their home in Maine, on the outskirts of the town, to travel into Omagh to do some shopping on the day of the explosion.
The devastation after the bomb blast in Omagh (Credit: PA/Getty)
He had just returned from a trip to the Czech Republic and had been washing his lorry when he saw her off.
“Our dad was at the mart, when he heard about the bomb… and later recalled that he had a bad feeling that Mum might have been in town,” Mark said.
“We will always struggle with that memory of him going into Omagh desperately searching for Mum.”
Meanwhile, Mandy described how she had gone to a makeshift morgue, along with other family members, to identify her mother’s body.
“We were not taken to see our mum,” she said. “Instead, we were shown her gold shoes that Mark knew she had been wearing when she left home.
“Mummy’s identity eventually had to be confirmed by her fingerprints, and this harsh reality made our pain even more unbearable.”
The siblings outlined how their mother’s death had a devastating and lasting impact.
“Our little family was torn apart on August 15, 1998,” they said.
“The trauma of the manner in which we lost our mum is always with us and undoubtedly impacted the lives we now lead and the people we are.
“It took us a long time before we could recall the happy memories that were replaced with the trauma of Mum’s death.
“But now we can cherish everything Mum and Dad did to create our loving home and give us a wonderful childhood.
“We are also grateful that their influence has enabled us not to hold on to anger and bitterness, and to try to live as they would have hoped.”
The brother and sister also recalled how their mother had overcome “many hardships in her younger life” before finding “much happiness” in adulthood.
“She and Dad were genuinely good, hard-working, rural people who, like so many others, did not deserve to experience such cruelty,” they concluded.