'We will be lost without him' - family's tribute as funeral held for grandad who died in tragic house fire

"I can’t imagine him being sad about how or why he has gone to heaven because he was always doing good, and he was always willing to help."

Those are the words Sean Mangan, the son of Derek Mangan who died tragically in a house fire in Dublin last week, used to describe his father an emotional eulogy to him at his funeral today.

Mr Mangan was remembered as a major Dubs fan, whose happiest day was "probably when Dublin beat Kerry last September", a loving husband, and a dedicated, doting father-of-five.

Mr Mangan (72), of Benmadigan Road, Drimnagh, died in a fire that broke out while he was visiting his lifelong friend, Joe Muldowney at his cottage in Lansdowne Lane last Saturday.

A socially distanced crowd gathered outside Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish, on Mourne Road, to pay their respects to Mr Mangan, while his wife Linda and their daughters and son, Sean, Erica, Linda, Elaine, and Sinead sat inside.

Through the speakers of a car parked outside the church doors, the crowd heard Sean describe how much his father adored his wife of 44-years.

In a touching eulogy, Sean said: “He was my ma’s best friend and confidante, he was her favourite person. He wouldn’t let her out of his sight, he worshiped the ground she walked on.

"He would remind us daily how much he loved her. He would sing ‘I love you as I’ve never loved before,’ like Finbar Furey as she cooked in the kitchen. Dinner will never be the same again."

Sean said the Mangan family "will be lost without him," and said he and his siblings would not be who they are today if it wasn’t for their father.

He spoke about how Mr Mangan loved his grandchildren and always made time to play games with them, and was planning to take his grandson, Oliver, on a fishing trip.

A fishing hat, a scarf, a pair of spoons, and a newspaper were left on the table of gifts.

A special mention was made for Mr Mangan’s brother, Sean, who sadly passed away in February, and his sister Phyllis, who lives in South Africa.

Before the funeral service, neighbours watched on from their gardens as Mr Mangan returned home for one final visit before travelling to the church by horse and carriage.

The horses’ plumes, which are traditionally black feathers, were a vibrant blue shade, a colour that was Mr Mangan’s favourite, and a flower arrangement in the shape of a Dublin jersey was placed in the back window of the carriage.

Neighbours held onto white balloons that were left free to roam the clear blue skies as the carriage set off for the church.

His daughter Sinead told Independent.ie that her father was a much-loved man that all the neighbours were planning to stand outside to pay tribute to him, and a crowd was expected to gather outside the church.

"We all idolised him. He was such a good and kind man, he would go out of his way to help anybody," she said.

"He went down to bring Joseph food and cigarettes, and he never came back. We are heartbroken."

Mr Mangan, known for being "a great ballad singer" with a "beautiful voice that could sing as well as the best of them," was buried in Palmerstown.

His daughter Elaine recalled how his booming voice singing ‘Good morning’ would often wake her up before work.

"It could be as early as 5am and I’d wake up to a knock on the door and I’d hearing him walking around the house singing, I’ll really miss it," she said.

Raglan Road by the Dubliners’ Luke Kelly played as he left the church to make his last journey through Drimnagh before being laid to rest.