A new report says ‘several anomalies’ at Sean Ross Abbey in Roscrea could be mass baby graves.
There have been calls for a fresh investigation at the Mother and Baby Home in the county after the team of engineers who surveyed the plot in Tuam reported similar findings at the local site.
The Angel Plot was scanned by the Commission four years ago, but experts from TST Engineering say their findings do not tally with the 2019 report.
It is known that almost 1,100 babies died at the home in Roscrea between 1931 and 1969 – but only 42 infant remains were found by the Commission of Inquiry.
TST director Simone Demurtas told Tipp Today there are possibly coffins in the ground and more than they thought- with further investigation now required :
“There is a high chance that there are more coffins yeah, but it is not easy to understand the anomalies because they are black and white images, you need to take your interpretation and do your assumption at the end with all the information background information, the GPR, and whatever else you have and come to a conclusion, if it is not possible you need to do more investigation.”
The Bring Them Home campaign said new findings at Sean Ross Abbey in Roscrea are hugely concerning.
Rachel Keogh is a member of the group and says they fundraised to allow TST Engineering carry out a survey of the area this year.
When the Commission of Inquiry did excavate just 10% of the Angel’s Plot 42 baby remains were discovered, Rachel says the new report shows extensive anomalies across the entire field and could suggest graves on a scale bigger than Tuam.
She told Tipp Today that this should be treated as a crime scene and the Commission should have no part in further investigations:
“It has to be handled very delicately but I just don’t think the Commission of Investigation should be allowed anywhere near this, they have completely undermined public trust with how they have handled the Commission of Investigation, you know survivor testimony went missing, there was all sorts of laws breached throughout that, all sorts of continued violations of human rights to the survivors they have been retraumatized, blow after blow ,after blow, devastating, and then they seal the archives for thirty years.”
