Ground floor of home destroyed by blaze

A FAMILY home was badly damaged in a fire just days before Christmas.

The ground floor of the detached house on Tirol Avenue, in the Paddocks estate, off Maryborough Hill in Cork, was completely destroyed in the blaze which firefighters believe started outside the house just before noon.

Luckily, there was no one in the house at the time and no one was injured.

Fire fighters managed to contain the blaze to the lower floor and prevented it from spreading to neighbouring homes. But the entire house suffered extensive smoke damage.

The father was on the property at the time and tried desperately to fight the blaze himself. But he had to call the emergency services at 12.10pm as it spread up into the PVC soffit, into the kitchen and living room area of his home and took hold in a low roof.

Three units of the city fire brigade rushed to the scene and two teams of fire fighters wearing breathing apparatus entered the building and managed to prevent the fire from spreading.

Garda forensic experts examined the scene yesterday and are satisfied the fire started accidentally outside the house, near a storage container.

Gerry Myers, a third fire officer with Cork City Council, said the house was extensively damaged.

“This was a potentially dangerous situation and it was only the swift action of firefighters which prevented the blaze from spreading to neighbouring properties,” he said.

He urged people to be vigilant around fire safety over the coming days.

“This is a time of celebration but people should also be vigilant,” he said.

“I would encourage people to locate Christmas trees away from radiators, which can dry out the tree.

“Christmas decorations are a heat source and people should turn them and all electrical appliances off at night, or whenever they leave their property.”