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Dublin Live
Dublin Live
National
Kim O'Leary

Heartwarming moment two brothers are reunited at Dublin Airport after 40 years apart

This is the heart-warming moment when two brothers separated by time and distance exchanged a hug in Dublin Airport after being apart for 40 years.

Willie, 90, set off on a six-week boat journey to Australia in search of work in 1959 and eventually went on to start a family. On Friday, Dublin Airport shared a video showing Willie along with his daughter Sue reuniting with his beloved brother Tony and his own son John in Terminal 1.

In the video, Willie immediately gets out of his wheelchair to envelope his brother Tony in a big hug, while introducing their respective children to one another for the very first time.

Read more: Dublin Airport reduces recommended passenger arrival times after 'significant improvement'

The airport said it was “an absolute pleasure to be part of this special moment”. Looking delighted to see one another again, Willie and Tony joked about who was taller and said how wonderful it was to see each other after so many years.

Dublin Airport also said that Willie celebrated his 90th birthday yesterday in Ireland with his family members including brother Tony. Irish Twitter users were delighted to see the footage, which has over 177,000 views on Twitter.

One person wrote: "This just made my Monday morning, God bless you all Willie and welcome HOME! Happy 90th." A second person wrote: "Aww that's so lovely. Welcome home Willie."

A third person wrote that they were "bawling" to see the lovely reunion. "Could you not have given a "Bawlin' Warnin' before tweeting that?! Lovely lovely story! Happy Birthday to you Willie and best wishes to your family. Slainte!" A fourth person added: "Welcome home Willie and Sue."

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