# A House Full of Victims, The McElhill Family

An episode of [Ireland Crimes and Mysteries](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1693261729), 5 Apr 2026, 44 min.

Audio: https://bauernordic-pods.sharp-stream.com/ie/3676/a_house_full_of_victims_c9877904_normal.mp3?aw_0_1st.episodeid=368437&aw_0_1st.collectionid=3676

In the early hours of November 13th, 2007, a neighbour in Omagh, County Tyrone, woke to screaming. Flames were tearing through the house next door. He grabbed a ladder and climbed toward an upstairs window, desperate to help. Inside were seven people. Five of them were children. By the time firefighters brought the blaze under control, all seven were dead. This is the story of what happened that night—and the years of warning signs that came before it. It's about a system designed to protect children, and what happens when that system fails. Correction: Early newspaper reports stated Arthur McElhill was 39 at the time of his death, which I repeated in this episode. The 2009 inquest confirmed he was actually 36 (born October 1971). This means he was 22, not 25, when he met 15-year-old Lorraine in 1993. The age gap was correctly stated as 7 years. This episode contains discussion of child death, domestic violence, sexual assault, and house fire. If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence: • Ireland: Women's Aid 1800 341 900 • Northern Ireland: Domestic & Sexual Abuse Helpline 0808 802 3347 • Men's Support: AMEN 046 902 3718 (ROI) / 028 9024 1929 (NI) Head over to the Ireland Crimes and Mysteries website for more ! www.irelandcrimesandmysteries.ie Sign up for your €1 a month Shopify Trial at Shopify.ie Join me over on Patreon for extra perks https://www.patreon.com/IrelandCrimesandMysteries Early access to episodes, monthly livestreams where we will be discussing the cases I've covered and much more as we build our own community. Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/irelandcrimesandmysteries/ Follow on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@irelandcrimesandmysteries Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/irelandcrimesandmysteries/ Follow on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@irelandcrimesandmysteries Follow on X: https://twitter.com/IrelandCrimes Visit my shop for exclusive Ireland Crimes and Mysteries merchandise https://ireland-crimes-and-mysterie-shop.fourthwall.com/en-eur/

Shows are listed from Apple Podcasts' charts and directory, and Podcast Index where it is used. Every show and episode belongs to its publisher and plays from the publisher's own feed; this site hosts none of them.