Dermot Dowdall recounts Stardust fire victims at inquest

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Firefighter Dermot Dowdall described finding victims huddled together at the Stardust inquest, reported on 1 December 2023.

He said the group had gathered in a circle on the dancefloor as he searched the building after the fire at the Artane nightclub, which killed 48 people on 14 February 1981.

Dowdall testified that the first call was received at 1.43am and that John Fitzsimons, a firefighter working as a doorman in the club, warned that as many as 200 people could be lost.

Dowdall said the warning shaped the brigade response. He arrived at about 1.49am and helped take injured patrons to hospital.