Community still in shock over deaths of father and son, funeral told

By Rebecca Black (PA)

A Co Armagh community is still in shock over the deaths of a father and son in a crash just two days after Christmas, their funeral has heard.

Peter Devlin and his son Loughlin, from Killylea, were killed in a two-vehicle collision outside the village last Friday.

Four other people, including a baby, were taken to hospital following the incident.

Mourners gathered at the Church of St Joseph in Tynan on Wednesday for a joint funeral for the father and son.

A crowd waited outside the church as a convoy of cars, including two hearses, arrived and the bells rang.

Parish priest Father Sean Moore told mourners the community remains in shock following the tragedy last Friday.

“No words of any of us here today can grasp the enormity of the grief and the sense of loss,” he said.

“As a community we’re stunned, we’re still in shock.”

He described the two men as symbolising hard work, and said both their faith and providing for their families were very important to them.

He added: “It’s impossible to sum up the grief here today; maybe each one of us can be a little bit more careful on the roads.

“I’m speaking to myself as well as each one of you. Please… this brings home the heartache that can be caused. Please, please show more care on the roads.”

Fr Moore also thanked those who helped at the scene of the crash and the emergency services.

The cortege arrives at the funeral of father and son Peter and Loughlin Devlin at the Church of St Joseph in Tynan (Photo by PA)