‘There was a bang and a light went out’: Irish families finally getting answers about 1981 nightclub fire

Inquiry into the Stardust inferno in north Dublin, that killed 48 and injured 214, recognises the suffering and grief of those left behind

Deirdre Dames was 18 and on the dancefloor of the Stardust nightclub in the early hours of Valentine’s Day in 1981 when the music stopped and the DJ announced there was a fire and people should head for the exits.

“Then there was a bang and the lights went out,” Dames recalled. “I was trying to make my way to my friends but everyone was pushing and shouting. I got on my hands and knees and crawled to the toilet.”