HOW did Newry�s Meadow estate escape relatively unscathed from the recent `Troubles,` while their neighbours at Derrybeg bore the brunt of the conflict. Five of the `Beg�s residents were shot dead like schoolboy Kevin Heatley, or killed in bomb-explosions; many were interned, while army road-blocks, searches and arrests were abundant.

By contrast, no one from the `Meadow` was interned. The only fatality was a young man, shot dead by the Provisional IRA in suspicious circumstances. And the British Army and RUC were conspicuous by their absence from the estate; there were no house-searches or arrests, and definitely no graffiti.

�On the other hand, the Derrybeg estate was situated beside the main route to the British Army base, and also into the heart of South Armagh. And since there was a large proportion of teenagers, many of them employed, the security forces provided an easy target for stone-throwers, followed by a `flooding` of the estate. And the hi-jacking of vehicles presented a problem.

�Also, houses were crammed into the Derrybeg estate, with lots of alleys through which those involved in rioting, attacks on police or army could easily make their escape. And the railway line provided a vantage-point, from which the army could maintain surveillance of the estate,� added the former council chairman.

Peter Jackson, long-time chairman of the Meadow and Armagh Road Community Association, stated that there were �some great people in the Derrybeg estate, such as John Duffy, Lou Morgan and Barney Larkin, but an influx of evacuees from Belfast had created a problem. Various political groups had tried to exercise control, but had been thwarted by the community leaders. The Meadow estate was also fortunate to have a `settled� population.�

One person, who has had plenty of experience in dealing with trauma and tragedy is Martin McCaul, one of the most experienced ambulance drivers in the Newry region.

A native of Orior Road in the Meadow estate, he is married to a nurse at Daisy Hill Hospital, and new resides at Jonesboro. During the past 30 years, Martin has been at the scenes of some of the worst carnage in the North, such as the bomb-explosion at the Customs Clearance Station in Newry, where nine people were killed; and the mortar-attack on the RUC Station at Corry Square, when nine police personnel lost their lives.

�There were no lights, and in the darkness we were walking over bodies of the dead and dying, - it was horrific. Then one day I was attending a road accident at Bessbrook, in which my sister Anne�s son was involved. I was trying to keep the child breathing, when my niece Lorna called out `That�s our Richard!� Striving to keep him alive on the way to hospital was the hardest thing I ever had to do.�

Martin�s mother and father, Madge Keenan from Ballyholland and Hugh McCaul, a native of Dun Laoghaire, were both employed at Daisyhill Hospital. Mr McCaul had been in the Fire Service during the last war, later joined the Bank of Ireland, and then was Ward Orderly at the Newry hospital for 38 years. Two sisters, Margaret and Ann, along with a brother Oliver, reside in Newry. Another brother, Hugh, was employed in a London hospital, but died of cancer in 1997.

Eldest of Martin�s children is Sharon, who is married to Brian Reel, an electrician from Silverbridge; while son Tony, along with daughters, Geraldine and Cathy live in New York.

After working as a Ward Orderly at Daisyhill Hospital, Martin joined his brother in England, studying psychiatry in London, before moving to Leicester, where he became a trainee ambulance driver in 1975. Moving back to the frontier town, he joined the local ambulance service, where he has remained for the past 30 years. The decision to return home was mainly motivated by a desire to secure a proper education for his children.

Explaining that the role of an emergency medical technician was to assist paramedics, Martin McCaul referred to the varied nature of the job, made more enjoyable by the mates he has worked with, such as Martin McAllister, whom he has known from schooldays; Tony McAlinden, Howard McConnell and Stewart Rowland. Over 30 personnel cover the area from Crossmaglen to Hilltown and Annalong.

�A good sense of humour makes the job easier,� the man from the `Meadow` explained. �Everybody here is great craic; and there have been many amusing tales. One time a GP wrongly identified a dead patient. He had brought the family together to tell them the tragic tidings, when I saw the man sit up in the bed. So I had to hasten and catch the doctor before he imparted the grim news. It wasn�t funny at the time, but afterwards we found it hilarious.

�Then there was the time when an ambulance was arranged to bring someone to hospital for a check-up. The driver pulled up at the house and a man, standing outside, got into the minibus. Ten minutes later, the driver got a call to say that the person had not been collected.

On looking in the mirror, he saw the man swaying from side to side saying: �Tommy�s on the wrong bus.� The Special Care patient had realised that something was wrong, when the vehicle had turned left for Belfast, instead of right for the Rathfriland Road Special Needs School.�

Martin McCaul then referred to problems of personal safety, especially when ambulance crews were called to riots or other street disturbances, with the issuing of `stab vests` on the agenda. He said that they had often been called to such anti-social behaviour, when it should be the police in the first instance. On one occasion he had come under attack, when intervening in a situation where a son was �literally kicking his father to death. I suffered bruised ribs as a result.

�The role of ambulance crews has been more hazardous because of social changes in recent years, especially in Newry, Warrenpoint, Armagh and Belfast. In the past, a fight might have meant a punch in the mouth, but present-day youth would not be satisfied until their victim has been beaten unconscious. Often young drunks from Belfast or south of the border cause the major problems.�

On the subject of traffic problems, the veteran ambulance-man highlighted the bottom of the Dublin Road in Newry, as well as Abbey Yard, for bottlenecks. While people would normally give way when they hear the siren, �the traffic can be so bad as to make it difficult to manoeuvre the vehicle.�

Martin McCaul has turned to Country and Western Music as his favourite form of entertainment, while his pastime is to raise funds for Southern Area Hospice. The fact that his father died in such an institution, and that his brother was a victim of cancer, have been his main motivation.

Next Page >