I’ve always really enjoyed shooting press stuff, there’s always a rush to it and you’re often interacting with loads of lovely people and going to interesting events.
Today wasn’t one of those days, I left my house around noon today to walk to town when multiple Gardai cars flew past me in the other direction, one then stopped to block the road so naturally I took out my camera to wait and see what was going on.
Soon after i took out my camera multiple Gardai bikes, and cars drove past escorting two ambulances so I took photos of it thinking nothing of it, this was until more Gardai went back in the direction the ambulances came from. I walked back in the direction they went until I got to a housing estate near my house. A resident had told me that a young child had got had choked and was rushed to hospital. I left the estate as there were people around the estate in grieving and it wasn’t my place to hang around.
Eventually i got home and sent out the photos I got, with just a vague description of what had happened as i didn’t know any more than the resident had told me. I eventually saw it pop up on my twitter that a young child had got caught up in the cord from window blinds and got choked and was then rushed to CUH in critical condition.
I had thought about the child a lot throughout the day hoping they would be okay until I found out they had passed away soon after they arrived at the hospital.
The incident has shocked both myself and everyone I’ve spoken to.
My heart goes out to all the people affected by the tragic.