‘I am so grateful everyday that Chloe was ok’

Chloe Emery has a lot to look forward to.

She will soon be celebrating her 25th birthday, and is set for a successful career in her chosen field after graduating from university with a Masters degree.

But it could all have been so different.

Born a few days after the Omagh bomb, Chloe was described as the ‘miracle baby’ because her heavily- pregnant mother had been caught up in the explosion.

Nicola Emery had been shopping with family members on Saturday, August 15, 1998, before attending the Tyrone County Hospital the next day to prepare for the birth.

“We went to the Carlton Bakery for a chat and some coffee, tea and treats,” she recalls.

Just a few minutes later, a police officer came into the bakery and ordered an evacuation.

Everyone was instructed to go to the bottom of the town due to a bomb threat at the Courthouse. A heavily pregnant Nicola, along with her mother, aunt and cousin, made their way down.

She was standing outside her mother’s workplace at Nicholl & Shiels when the bomb exploded.

“I just remember a very eerie silence… and then I heard alarms, people screaming and crying, and I saw rubble everywhere,” Nicola said.

“I can’t remember the noise of the bomb, or at least I don’t think I can. I was just in total shock. I didn’t know what happened.

“I got myself up off the ground, and walked over to where my mum, auntie and cousin were to see if they were alright.

“We couldn’t find my cousin. He was only young at the time, and was missing.

“But he had run down towards Campsie, so he was okay and unhurt. We were so grateful.”

Nicola, who had laceration injuries on her legs, was also concerned about her unborn baby.

“All I could think about was my baby. Is she ok? Is she moving? I was in real shock. We got in the car, and a work colleague drove us to the hospital.

“I was taken into the front part of A & E where they did an ultrasound to see if they could find a heartbeat.

“Thankfully, they got one, and I was so relieved.”

Nicola was well enough to the leave the ‘County, and her grandfather drove her to South Tyrone Hospital in Dungannon.

Just five days later, little Chloe was born without any complications, weighing a healthy 7llb 6oz.

Speaking, at the time, of her new baby’s future, Nicola said, “I want, more than anything, to see her grow up in a world free of violence.

“I feel so happy that she is all right. I hope there will be no violence or terrorism. I just want her to be safe.”

Chloe is now turning 25, has completed a Masters Degree in Public Health at John Moores University in Liverpool, and is hoping to pursue a career in her chosen profession in the city she studied in.

Speaking to the UH, Chloe said she feels ‘very lucky and grateful’ that she has been able to have a ‘normal life’.

“It is strange to look back on that time, because it was just before I was born, but it could easily have turned out very different for me.

“I feel very lucky that my family who got caught up in the bomb were okay.

“I was able to live a normal life, go to uni, and meet a lots of different people… so I feel very grateful.”

Nicola says she is ‘extremely proud’ of everything that Chloe has achieved in her life to date.

However, 25 years after the bomb blast, she still experiences ‘some trauma’.

“I saw horrible things that day, and it took a long time to work through that.

“Sometimes, I go and sit in the Memorial Garden because it is a very peaceful place.

“When I am there, I just think about how lucky I am… and about the people who weren’t so lucky.”