The Horror that Halloween Night in Galway City brought.......

What Started out as the typical Halloween night for many of us, ended tragically for one Galway student.

Halloween is every College students delight; a chance to relive our childhood memories of dressing up, in fact students take the whole art of costume making very seriously. 

I myself was one of the student revelers out in Galway on Wednesday night, having organised a get together with my fellow M.A Journalists, we headed off into the night. I  took to my trusty pirate costume as Captain Jack Sparrow but I saw a different side to Halloween that I had forgotten about. 

It was a bit like a scene from a horror movie as we got to Eyre square, everything from army soldiers to zombie brides awaited us, but among the great efforts put in by students, there was a strong police presence in the city and a notable amount of ambulances. Walking across Eyre Square there was the first casualty of the night. A young man in his early 20's was lying in a pool of blood in a "onesie" while paramedics attend to him.

 

I had to take out the i-phone and take a snap, I really should have dressed up as Clark Kent for Halloween as I can't seem to view things without seeing a story in it. I did feel sorry for the young man though, Lying semi-unconscious on Eyre Square was certainly not what he had anticipated for his night out. Alcohol seemed to be a strong factor in the madness that was Galway last night. We all like to socialize and go out but the accidents that follow really has me thinking is that glass of vino really worth it anymore???

Having left one fine establishment , I along with a friend joined the Queue for Halo Night club but it was here that the real horror of Halloween was unfolding. A tragic accident or prank has left an NUI Galway student in a critical condition in St James Hospital in Dublin. 

As I was attempting to get into the line for the club, it became known very quickly that something really bad had gone wrong. There were people panicing and all I could here was fire. The bouncers were not letting anyone else in, instead an ambulance came rushing up the street

The tragedy that was unfolding inside was the horror that 2nd year medical student had been set on fire and received horrific burns to his body. Today as I sit here all I can do is think of the horrors of such an accident and my thoughts are with his family and the hope that he will recover

Matthew Sheridan has been transferred to St James hospital in Dublin for treatment following a horrific incident at Halo nightclub in Galway city on Wednesday night. The NUI Galway student is said to have extensive burns to his body.

A statement released from NUI Galway on Thursday afternoon said

 “Matthew Sheridan is a medical student in the second year of his programme in NUI Galway’s Medical School.

 His classmates, the School faculty and the wider University community were shocked to learn of the tragic circumstances in which Matthew was seriously injured last evening.

Matthew is a highly motivated, respected student who shows evidence of real leadership potential and commitment to his community. 

He is a very popular student who is well-loved by his classmates and peers. 

We understand that the circumstances of his injuries are still being investigated.

 A University staff member was contacted by the emergency services in the immediate aftermath of the incident and was able to provide assistance in quickly contacting Matthew’s family in Dublin.

 Our thoughts are with Matthew and his family in this very difficult situation and the Medical School is available to assist in any way possible.

 On-going support services are also being made available to support Matthew’s classmates through this very upsetting event”.

Halloween can be the best time of the year, children trick or treating, students enjoy the social aspects of the holiday but it all comes down to timing and why things happen.

It is said that everything happens for a reason and it's all part of the bigger picture but I really don't know about this.

There is so much hurt and pain in the media reported everyday, it just makes me wonder why these events happen and what possibly could be the bigger picture.