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22nd Mar 2016

VIDEO: Sean McGrotty’s Brother Thanks “Hero” Who Saved Baby Rionaghac-Ann

"You're a hero in this family's eyes."

Megan Cassidy

The brother of tragic Sean McGrotty, Frank, has spoken of the family’s devastation and extended his thanks to Davitt Walsh who saved baby Rionaghac-Ann.

The remains of Sean McGrotty, 49, his sons Mark, 12, and Evan, 8, his mother-in-law Ruth Daniels, 59, and her daughter, Jodie Lee, 14, who tragically died when their vehicle slipped into Lough Swilly from a pier in Buncrana, arrived home in Derry today.

Thanks to the heroic efforts of Davitt Walsh, four-month-old Rionaghac-Ann – the only survivor of the horrific accident – has been reunited with her mother Louise.

Today, Sean’s brother Frank revealed to RTÉ News that the family only lost their sister in recent months:

“It has come as an unbelievable shock.

“We buried our sister eight months ago, and my mother died two, three years ago as well so we were all still in mourning for my sister.

This has devastated the whole family. We are now totally in shock and dismay.

“I don’t know how we’re going to come back from this one.”

Speaking about baby Rionaghac-Ann, he added:

“I want to thank the man who saved her.

“You’re a hero in this family’s eyes.”

Frank McGrotty, brother of Sean McGrottyFrank McGrotty, brother of Sean McGrotty, speaking on RTÉ’s Six One News: “I want to thank the man who saved her [baby Rionaghac-Ann], you’re a hero in this family’s eyes.”

Posted by RTÉ News on Monday, 21 March 2016