A FORMER STARDUST doorman has rejected a claim by a barrister that his original statements about the night of the fire appeared to be blaming the patrons for not being able to get out of the burning nightclub.
John Furley said he did not agree with a suggestion made by Michael O’Higgins SC that his original statements of people pushing or kicking exit doors made the patrons seem as if they were “acting like headless chickens”.
Furley was continuing his evidence today to the jury in the Dublin District Coroner’s Court, during the inquest into the fire that killed 48 people when it swept through the Stardust nightclub in the early hours of 14 February 1981.
The jury also heard evidence from a former glass washer, Joseph McGrane, that the exit doors in question had locks and chains on them and were blocked by skips used for empty bottles.
O’Higgins, representing a number of the victims’ families, showed Furley photographs of the exit doors in the Stardust after the fire, and Furley agreed that the pictures showed locks and chains on the doors at exits four, five and six.
He also agreed with O’Higgins that the design of an emergency door makes for the opening of it to be a very simple process.
“The idea that a person would be unaware that you have to push the bar down is absurd,” suggested O’Higgins.
“I wouldn’t say absurd, no,” replied Furley.
The witness went on to agree with O’Higgins that, judging by the photos he was shown of the exit doors, a chain could be wrapped around the bars very tightly, and the lock could act as a jam in keeping it tight.
O’Higgins said that in a statement Furley had made shortly after the fire, he had said that when he reached exit five, he saw “a few fellows at the door kicking it, trying to get out”.
In the statement, Furley said he shouted at the men to push the bars on the door down, and the door opened easily. O’Higgins said that in another statement made by the witness, Furley had said he saw six or seven people kicking at the door, and he told them to push down on the bars, which they did.
O’Higgins then said that in another statement, Furley said he saw “five or six fellows pushing and banging on the door”.
“We have this account three times of fellows acting like headless chickens,” said O’Higgins.
“I wouldn’t agree with that,” said Furley, going on to say there was “wholesale panic” inside the nightclub.
O’Higgins suggested that Furley’s statements appeared to be blaming the patrons for not being able to get out, to which Furley replied that this was “not the case”.
Evidence was also heard from Joseph McGrane, who was a glass washer in the Stardust.
In his original statement, he said that on the evening of 13 February 1981, he smelt stale air beside the shuttered area of the Stardust, which he described as “a dead smell”.
He said that there were two blue skips for empty bottles near exit five all night, blocking the left hand side of exit five. He said that after the fire started, he saw someone he thought was a bouncer opening exit five.
In response to questioning by Mark Tottenham BL, a member of the coroner’s legal team, McGrane said it was his opinion that the doors at exit five were opened by “the weight of people on it”. He said he didn’t see people kicking the door, but there was quite a crowd around it.
McGrane told Bernard Condon SC, representing ten of the families, that during the evening, he saw a doorman checking the locks on exit five. He confirmed that there were chains and locks on these doors. McGrane also confirmed to Dáithi Mac Cárthaigh BL that exit five “wasn’t much of an exit door” as the two skips were up against it.
The jury also heard evidence from former barman, Alan Maher, who agreed with Seán Guerin SC, representing a number of families, that there was “no sense of anyone taking control of the situation” on the night of the fire.
He also confirmed to Gary Moloney BL, acting on behalf of one of the families, that he did not receive any fire or safety training at the nightclub.
The inquest continues tomorrow.
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