A large turnout is expected at the funeral in Dublin this Friday of Garda Det Deirdre Finn, who died in a fire on a boat on the river Shannon during the bank holiday weekend. While the Garda investigation into her death, at the marina in Carrick-on-Shannon, Co Leitrim, is continuing, foul play is not suspected.
A postmortem on the victim’s remains was carried out at Sligo University Hospital Mortuary yesterday. While the results were not released publicly, it is understood Det Finn was sleeping when the fire engulfed her boat.
Det Finn had lived in Ballinteer and Ballycullen, both in south Dublin, and is survived by her father, Pat, and brothers Cormac and Dermot. She was predeceased by her mother, Agnes.
Her remains are due to repose on Thursday from 4pm to 7pm at Larry Massey Funeral Home, Eden Centre, Grange Road, Rathfarnham. Her funeral service is scheduled for Friday at 12pm in St John the Evangelist Church, Ballinteer, followed by burial in Kilmashogue Cemetery, Rathfarnham.
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Det Finn, who was in her early 50s and due to retire in the next year, was with friends boating on the River Shannon at the weekend. However, gardaí believe she was the only person on the cruiser when the fire was first spotted and the alarm raised just after 7am on Monday.
While a number of people saw the fire as it took hold, the flames were too strong for bystanders to intervene, though gardaí believe one man made efforts to get onto the boat to check if anyone was on board.
Det Finn’s remains were recovered from the vessel after the fire was brought under control by fire fighters who rushed to the scene. The boat was also removed from the scene for examination by the Garda Technical Bureau while the scene was secured on Monday for examination by the Garda, which is leading the investigation into the cause of the blaze.
As well as her work attached to the Dún Laoghaire Garda district, Det Finn was well known official in the Garda Representative Association (GRA), representing other rank and file gardaí from her division in southeast Dublin.
President of the GRA, Brendan O’Connor, said the Garda was “devastated at the loss of a colleague and friend who not only was a talented crime investigator but also served colleagues and the GRA so well” in a number of elected roles. He added he had learned of Det Finn’s death “with deep sadness”.
“Dee was a very experienced and committed district and divisional rep, who also served on the standing orders committee,” he said in a message to GRA members, adding she had “lost her life in a tragic accident”.
Det Finn was an experienced member of the boating community and had taken part in the Shannon Boat Rally just before her death. She was a regular visitor to the river, where she spent much of her recreational time boating.
Kay Baxter, president of the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland which promoted the rally at the weekend, said news of Det Finn’s death had resulted in “disbelief and shock”.
She described Det Finn as a woman with “a very big heart and a very big smile” and it was “with a heavy heart” she was paying tribute to her on the occasion of her death. She described Det Finn as “our much loved friend and highly respected member”, adding the association’s “thoughts and prayers are with her dad, brothers, extended family, friends and colleagues at this very difficult time”.
“Deirdre was well known in our boating community – we are like one big family and we all help one another out and everybody knows everybody,” she added. She made friends easily and will be very sadly missed.”
During her policing career, Det Finn had spent time attached to the Organised Crime Unit, mainly investigating drug dealing, and was most recently based at Dún Laoghaire and Shankill, where she was best known. She worked on a range of investigations including solving armed robberies and sexual crimes.
