Interview
Suffering the depths of grief led Network Rail’s CAITRIONA O’BRIEN to form the Rail Industry Bereavement Support Group. TOM ALLETT reports
There’s no darker moment to experience in life than the sudden loss of a loved one.
Caitriona(Cat) O’Brien is Workforce Health, Safety and Environment Advisor (Operations) for Network Rail’s North West and Central Region. Her partner Jon died at the age of just 45 in November 2020, having suffered a stroke.
The shock she experienced, and the devastating aftermath she endured, eventually led her to form a help group for fellow sufferers in the rail industry.
After two decades in the Royal Navy, Jon had worked as a Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) with the British Transport Police. He was on duty close to the Manchester Arena on the day of the terrorist bomb attack after the Ariana Grande concert in May 2017. Fortunately, he was not caught by the blast, but he immediately ran towards the scene to offer what help he could.
The official report into the incident recorded he was attending to the injured within a minute of the blast, and he was subsequently awarded the British Empire Medal at Buckingham Palace. It was an unforgettable day for the family, but Cat’s world then collapsed after Jon’s sudden passing.
Cat explains: “He hadn’t been unwell previously. But having been a PCSO on duty in the vicinity of the Manchester Arena concert bombing, he had to give evidence at the subsequent Public Inquiry. He found that very stressful. Apart from this, we had a beautiful, simple, happy life.
“We were just into the second of the COVID lockdowns when he died. All the hospital mortuary staff were off work and it was five weeks before we could arrange to bury Jon.”
Understandably, Cat was close to tears through some of our conversation, and she openly admits that losing Jon completely floored her for a long time. She explains how there were lengthy periods when the need to school her son was the only thing that kept her going.
“The funeral service was a very small and undeserved event. Jon had spent 22 years in the Navy, and it would probably have been a big ceremonious event but for the restrictions.
All of my family live in Ireland, so they could not come over.
“When I came home after the funeral it was just me and my son, who has additional needs and was home schooling. Every day, everything was very, very bleak. The only thing that was getting me out of bed in the morning was the need to do his home schooling.”
When Cat felt able to return to work, she found that while Network Rail had several ‘help’ groups, there wasn’t one dealing with bereavement, so she decided to start her own.
“In the new year, I thought I could help myself by going back to work. The support was great. I had a very supportive line manag
