Man in house fire hours after getting engaged
The incident happened hours after Ian Culhoon, 24, from Livingstone, Scotland, had got engaged to his pregnant girlfriend.
The condition of the young Scottish factory worker was described as “critical” last night by staff at St James’ Hospital in Dublin. Mr Culhoon is understood to be on a life support machine in the hospital’s intensive care unit after suffering serious burns in the fire.
His girlfriend, Eva Bracken, revealed that Ian has asked her to marry him on Christmas Eve. The couple planned to get married in Dundalk next St Valentine’s Day.
Mr Culhoon only moved to Ireland last August after getting a job at the United Beverages plant in Dundalk. Several units of the local fire brigade were called to the rented house at Woodville Manor in Dundalk where Mr Culhoon lives with friends. The blaze broke out shortly after 6.30am on Christmas morning.
Another man who was in the house at the time managed to escape the inferno without serious injury, although he was also brought to hospital for treatment.
The house was extensively damaged in the fire, although gardaí are so far unable to say what caused the blaze.
Meanwhile, an arson attack on a railway museum in the North early yesterday morning is estimated to have resulted in more than 385,000 worth of damage. One of five historical railway carriages housed at the Railway Museum in Downpatrick, Co Down, was destroyed.
A PSNI spokesperson said the fire was deliberately started in a carriage before the blaze spread quickly to other carriages and the station building at around 3am.
“We are very, very distressed. This is a voluntary organisation and the amount of man hours put in by our members in restoring rolling stock and the station is immense. It is very much a labour of love,” said museum spokesman, Edwin Gray.
