Son of hero driver of 'lost' bus recalls the 1982 snow
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THE SON of hero bus driver Johnny Finegan was also caught up in the terrible events of that Friday in January 1982 – getting stuck just a few miles from where his 'missing' father had finally come to a halt.
Jim Finegan from Termonfeckin revealed that he too worked for CIE at the time of the mighty snows of that year.
'It was quite a story at the time,' he stated. 'I started driving a bus in 1981 so I wasn't a driver very long when all this happened.'
Jim was based in the Drogheda depot and on the day he was asked to take out the 4.15pm bus to Ardee, with six passengers on board. 'Some might say it was crazy, but off I went,' he added. There had been a hope that he might have actually been able to find his father as well on the road, but by Collon he was in severe trouble and the bus ground to a halt in a drift.
He did manage to get it out and it got to Ardee before worsening weather ended his journey for the day and night.
'It was incredible. I passed by cars covered in so much snow I couldn't even see them.' He was forced to stay in Mcquaid's pub in Ardee overnight. 'I would have to say the sight of such snowdrifts was awful, but my father got great praise for what he did.'
Sadly, Johnny passed away suddenly in 1984 while at a Credit Union conference in Belfast.
'He was very well known and was deeply involved with Naomh Mairtin in Monasterboice as well.'
Like his father, Jim, who worked on the buses for 20 years, always felt that the passengers, especially the younger ones, came first.
'We'd be doing a school run and if we pulled up at a house and the child wasn't ready we'd wait for them. A lot of families might not have a car so they'd be stranded. It was part of the service as a bus driver,' he added.
