Tragic Spence men’s name lives on with newborn twins

Tragic Spence men’s name lives on with newborn twins
By The Newsroom
Published 25th Apr 2020, 07:00 BST
Updated 28th Apr 2020, 16:58 BST
Emma Spence, who has given birth to twin boysEmma Spence, who has given birth to twin boys
Emma Spence, who has given birth to twin boys

Emma Spence, an artist from Hillsborough, Co Down, announced the arrival of her twin boys on social media, sharing a photo of the infants.

And in a moving tribute to her brother and father, who also died in the accident, Emma has named her sons Noel Graham Spence Rice and Nevin Jackie Abel Rice.

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“On the same month Nevin would have turned 30, Peter and I have been blessed with the birth of 2 baby boys,” Emma posted.

“We found out 7 years to the day we buried the Spence men that we were expecting twins.

“We will make sure the boys grow up to know all about the special men they are named after,” she wrote.

Nevin Spence was just 22 when he was killed along with his brother Graham, 30, and father Noel, 52, in a slurry tank accident at the family farm on September 15, 2012.

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At their funerals at Ballynahinch Baptist Church it was revealed Emma risked her own life to try to save her brothers and father. She twice climbed into a manhole and then down into a slurry tank, where the three men all died trying to save each other, but became overcome by slurry fumes.

well-wishers including BBC sports presenter Stephen Watson and UTV’s Pamela Ballantine tweeted their congratulations to Emma.

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Related topics:Hillsborough