THE SAFETY and wellbeing of the three children of a Co Derry couple who were temporarily taken into care in Portugal must be of primary importance, according to a Co Derry councillor who knows the family.
The children were taken into care after their parents allegedly passed out drunk in their hotel on the Algarve at the weekend.
It is “very unlikely” that the couple will face charges of neglecting their three young children, a judicial source said yesterday. Instead Portuguese police, hospital and social services reports are expected to be assembled and sent to social services in Northern Ireland.
The couple are said to be embarrassed and remorseful about the incident.
Hotel staff in Vilamoura in the Algarve called police after the couple, aged in their early 30s, collapsed on Friday night. They were rushed to a health centre in nearby Loulé while their children – the youngest aged one, and the eldest six – were temporarily taken into care at the Refugio Aboim Ascensao children’s home in Faro.
The youngsters arrived at the home at 5am on Saturday and remained there until their parents came to collect them at midday after a public attorney ruled they should be returned.
A senior court source in Faro who was familiar with the case said the incident was probably not so serious that the couple would face prosecution.
SDLP councillor Kate Lagan said while the initial reports surrounding the incident were both “shocking and extremely worrying, it would be unwise and unfair to rush to judgment until the full facts are established”.
“It is clear that the events which led up to this incident need to be fully investigated. The safety and wellbeing of the children involved should now be of primary importance,” said Ms Lagan.
Friends and neighbours of the couple in Maghera expressed their shock at the weekend’s events.
The incident happened just 45 miles from Praia da Luz, where Madeleine McCann went missing a year ago from her family’s holiday apartment while her parents dined nearby.– (Additional reporting PA)