Thatcher’s sadness at Adare cottage fires

The thatcher who reroofed one of the two Adare cottages destroyed in a fire at the weekend spoke yesterday of his sadness and shock at the destruction of his handiwork.

The two buildings were among the last 11 remaining thatched cottages built by Lord Adare between 1835 and 1870 and are a huge tourist draw to the picture postcard heritage village.

James Lee from Ballyorgan reroofed the cottage owned by sisters Jane and Henrietta Benson in August 2012, using about one and a half tonnes of reed harvested from the banks of the Shannon at Coonagh and Bunratty.