Forensic Science Laboratory bombing

Forensic Science Laboratory bombing
Forensic Science Laboratory bombing
Part of the Troubles
Location	Newtownbreda, Belfast, Northern Ireland
Date	23 September 1992 (UTC)
Target	Northern Ireland Forensic Science Laboratory
Attack type	Van bomb
Deaths	0
Injured	20
Perpetrator	Provisional Irish Republican Army; South Armagh Brigade

The Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) targeted the Northern Ireland Forensic Science Laboratory (NIFSL) facilities on Newtownbreda Road in the southern outskirts of Belfast with a large 3,000 lb bomb on 23 September 1992. The huge impact of the bomb destroyed the lab and damaged over 1,000 homes within a 1.5 mile radius, including adjacent Belvoir Park, a Protestant housing estate.^[2]^[3] It was one of the biggest bombs ever detonated during Northern Ireland's Troubles, causing massive damage and being felt over 10 miles away.^[4] Hundreds of residents had to be treated for shock. Several military vehicles were damaged.^[5] The lab was a key target because it analysed evidence in cases involving IRA attacks.^[6] The IRA had given a warning, and British Army bomb disposal experts were investigating an abandoned van when the explosion occurred. One estimate put the repair damage cost at £20 million at the time.^[7]

According to journalist and author Toby Harnden, the attack was planned and carried out from beginning to end by the IRA South Armagh Brigade. Volunteers from the brigade hijacked a truck near Newry and packed it with explosives weighing 3,500 pounds (1,600 kg). They left the truck outside the Forensic Science Laboratory at 8:40pm. Nearly 45 minutes later, after a coded warning, the bomb exploded.^[8]

References

^ CAIN - 1992 Chronology
^ John D., Taylor (1 February 1993). "Bomb Damage (Newtownbreda)". Hansard, HC Deb, 01 February 1993, Vol. 218, cc117-24. UK Government. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
^ "IRA blast damages over 1,000 homes". The Independent. 24 September 1992. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
^ Kearney, Vincent (19 September 2017). "'Biggest' IRA bomb targeted NI justice". BBC News. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
^ Oppenheimer, A.R. (2009). IRA: The Bombs and The Bullets. A History of Deadly Ingenuity. Irish Academic Press. p. 96. ISBN 978-0-7165-2895-1.
^ Cowley, Martin (24 September 1992). "Bombing of forensic lab likely to disrupt courts". The Irish Times. The Irish Times.
^ "Damage in huge blast put at 20m pounds: A Belfast housing estate". The Independent. Retrieved 3 June 2018.
^ Toby Harnden Bandit Country: The IRA & South Armagh pp.16