Dig for remains of almost 800 babies begins at former ‘mother and baby home’

Pre-excavation work has begun at a former mother-and-baby home in Tuam.

It is believed that these babies were put into a sewage tank, back then labelled as "the pit".

Since this harrowing discovery, it's been a waiting game for when the excavation could begin.

Now, the long-awaited forensic uncovering at the mother-and-baby home in Tuam, Galway, will finally begin.

According to local historian Catherine Corless, many of the children who died at the institute are believed to have been put into a former sewage tank.

It was due to Corless's persistence and continuous thorough research that the deaths of 798 children at the mother-and-baby home between 1925 and 1961 were uncovered.

Only two out of 798 babies were buried in a nearby cemetery.

The historian says she feels very relieved that the excavation is set to begin, according to Sky News.

"It's been a long, long journey. Not knowing what's going to happen, if it's just going to fall apart or if it's going to happen."

Catherine Corless's discovery back in 2014 shocked Ireland and exposed the sinister truth behind a mid-century Ireland under the heavy influence of Catholicism, especially its attitudes towards illegitimate children and their mothers.

Mothers and their illegitimate children were often sent to mother-and-baby homes before being separated.

A decade later, Daniel MacSweeney is leading a team of investigators on a forensic excavation that could take up to two years.

The main goal is to provide a dignified reburial by identifying as many of the remains as possible through DNA testing.

This excavation means a great deal to the family members of the victims of the institution in Tuam.

It sparks hope for Annette McKay, whose mother Margaret (Maggie) O'Connor gave birth to a baby girl in the Tuam home in 1942 after being raped at the young age of 17.

The baby girl (Mary Margaret) died six months after her birth. Annette recalls her late mother remembering how "she was pegging washing out and a nun came up behind her and said 'the child of your sin is dead'.

Annette hopes her baby sister's remains can be identified during the uncovering and can be laid to rest alongside her mother, Maggie.

"I don't care if it's a thimbleful, as they tell me there wouldn't be much remains left; at six months old, it's mainly cartilage more than bone. I don't care if it's a thimbleful for me to be able to pop Mary Margaret with Maggie. That's fitting," per Sky News.