Crumlin Road Prison bombing

On 24 November 1991 the Provisional IRA (IRA) exploded a home made bomb in the Ulster Loyalist wing of HM Prison Crumlin Road killing two Loyalist prisoners, one from the Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF) and one from the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF).[1] This came at the height of a debate on the issues of desegregation between Loyalist and Irish Republican prisoners.

Crumlin Road Prison bombing
Part of the Troubles
Crumlin Road Gaol interior
LocationHM Prison Crumlin Road, Crumlin Road, Belfast, Northern Ireland
Coordinates54°35′07.8″N 5°55′22.7″W
Date14 November 1991 (GMT)
TargetUlster Loyalist prisoners
Attack type
Time bomb
Deaths2 Loyalist paramilitaries (1 UVF and 1 UDA)
Injured8 Loyalist prisoners
PerpetratorProvisional IRA

Bombing

Provisional IRA prisoners smuggled semtex and explosive materials into the prison and assembled the bomb. The bomb was made by IRA volunteers from County Tyrone.[2] The bomb was planted in 'C Wing' the loyalists' dining room area, and hidden behind a radiator. The bomb exploded while the loyalist prisoners were eating dinner. UDA member Robert Skey (27) and UVF member Colin Caldwell (23) were both killed by the blast, Skeys instantly, while Caldwell died of his wounds four days later on 28 November. Eight other people were injured.[3]

In December 1992 the UFF launched a rocket attack at Crumlin Rd Prison at what the UFF believed was a Republican part of the prison. It's believed this was in retaliation for the November 1991 bombing.[4] Nobody was injured as a result.[5]

See also

References
  1. "CAIN: Chronology of the Conflict 1991". cain.ulster.ac.uk. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
  2. McDonald, Henry; Cusack, Jim (2016). UVF - The Endgame. Poolbeg Press Ltd.
  3. Reuters (25 November 1991). "Bomb Goes Off in Ulster Jail, Killing Inmate, Wounding 8". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
  4. HM Prison Crumlin Road
  5. "Protestant terrorists hit top security jail in missile attack". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 12 April 2019.

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