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AFTER A YEAR of excavation at the site of the former mother and baby home in Tuam, Co Galway, forensic investigators have uncovered the remains of 99 infants.
It’s the latest update from the office responsible for the excavation, and adds 22 more remains to a previous figure of 77 uncovered over the past year.
These 22 infants were found in coffins outside the memorial garden.
Work continues to uncover the extent of the remains buried at the former site of the mother and baby home in Tuam, which closed in 1961.
In 2014, research led by local historian Catherine Corless indicated that 796 babies and young children were buried in a sewage system at the Co Galway institution across that time period.
Archaeologists and other specialists started working at the site on 14 July last year.
The team is examining the surrounding areas of the memorial garden on the site, which is host to the sewage tank where the largest number of infant remains are believed to been left by the Bon Secours nuns, who ran the home.
An independent statutory office established to investigate and uncover the remains of these babies and toddlers today held a briefing for media to update the public on their work to date, as well as unveiling their new facility in Toghermore.
The Office of the Director of Authorised Intervention, Tuam (ODAIT) received the keys to the forensic facility and mortuary on Friday. Media were brought to view the area this morning.
The HSE building, which has received investment of around €4.1 million from the State to bring it up to performance standards, will become the base for where infant remains are brought and examined.
A team of worldwide experts will operate at the facility and work to establish the identity and story of the individual children.
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