‘Lives have been changed forever’

Funeral of Australia building site accident victim Gerard Bradley taking place at St Malachy's Church in Coleraine Co-Derry on Saturday. Gerry died alongside Joe McDermott from Omagh when they were crushed by a concrete slab while working at a building site in Perth Australia last month. Picture Margaret McLaughlin © 5-12-15 see story

Gerard Bradley (29), who was well known in the Coleraine and Portstewart areas, was buried after Requiem Mass in St Malachy’s Church in Coleraine.

He was killed alongside his pal, Omagh man Joe McDermott, on the building site in Perth.

Gerry had been in Australia since last February, with his girlfriend, Shelley.

Saturday’s service was streamed live online to allow Gerry’s pals in Perth to watch.

In his homily, Fr Brendan Mulhall spoke of how one single moment in time had changed the lives of the Bradley family forever.

“In one single moment they found themselves caught up in the middle of a situation that you would not wish on anyone,” he said.

“There’s always something immensely painful about the death of a young person.”

Last week, Gerry’s brother Gregory thanked the public for their support, through a blog post, on which he announced funeral details.

He said: “On behalf of the Bradley Family, we wanted to thank everyone who has sent messages of support and visited us in an extremely tough week.

After the funeral mourners gathered at Portstewart Golf Club, where Gerry was a member to take part in a celebration of his life.

Gerry was the son of Gerald and Patricia, brother of Jon-Paul, Gregory, Aoife, and grandson of Margaret and the late Michael Devine.

Tomorrow (Wednesday), a fund raiser will be held at the Gin Bar in the Harbour Bar, Portrush.

Proceeds will be shared between two charities, The Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust and The Claddagh Association, both charities have supported the local family.