'I have to start again' — Fire guts home Kerry grandfather had spent decades building

The Good Friday blaze comes not long after the father-of-five had recovered from a serious accident that involved a fall from his roof

(Left to right) Pieter Bot's daughter Wendy Donnelly, granddaughter Lily-Mae Donnelly, daughter Lonneke Bot, Pieter Bot and daughter Linde Bot Hutchinson at the site of the home he lost in a blaze in Behihane, Castlecove. Picture: Michael Donnelly

A Kerry grandfather has described seeing the home he spent decades building destroyed in 10 minutes by a devastating fire.

Pieter Bot's home and workshop, which he constructed with his own hands, have now been reduced to cinders following the Good Friday blaze.

Neighbours and friends have since come together to support him with rebuilding his home, with around €60k already raised through a Go Fund Me account set up by his daughters. The exact cause of the fire remains unknown, but Pieter believes it may have been sparked by a piece of timber in the stove.

He recalled enjoying a break from re-roofing the house with a neighbour when the drama unfolded. The father-of-five had only just recovered from a serious accident that involved a fall from his roof while undertaking work last year when the fire broke out.

Fire crews from Sneem, Caherciveen, Killarney and Killorglin desperately tried in vain to save the residence.

“I nearly had my house finished when I went to have tea with a neighbour. I might have only been gone 10 minutes but when I came back it was all gone. I’m not sure what good could come of this because I’m not that young anymore. I’m 74 and I have to start again but I’m not giving up hope.” 

Mr Bot said he is grateful he managed to save his beloved animals.

“The three cows, cats, the dog and the donkey were all saved. 

It would been very tragic if a human life had been lost but the lives of animals matter too. They are black from the soot but I’m happy they are all okay.

The construction worker moved to Ireland from Amsterdam in the late 1970s where he set up the family home with partner Marianne and raised five daughters. Linde, Lonneke, Wendy and Sasha all live in Kerry with the exception of Femke who lives in Canada.

He praised his daughters for their compassion and support during such a painful time.

"I am lucky to have the help of my daughters and such great neighbours."

He admits the pain is still raw.

“I’m here so long. My first visit was 1971 and then I came back for good a few years later so we are here a long time. You build up your life here. These are the hardest moments where everything leaves you in front of your eyes. 

"The spirit is great here. My daughters took time off work and we cleared the area. Now, we have to make a plan to see what we can do which will all come down to cost and money, but people are helping and that’s very good to see.” 

This is not Pieter’s first brush with adversity.

“Last year I fell off the roof and was knocked out for four months because of one mistake in life. I was just getting better when this happened but it’s hard to kill a person’s spirit.” 

Pieter Bot at his home and workshop which was destroyed by a devastating fire on Good Friday. Picture: Michael Donnelly

Pieter’s daughter Linde spoke of how loved her dad is in the community.

“He’s well known for working on other people’s houses. This was his time to start fixing his own house. He had a bad accident where he fell off his own roof and he really hurt himself. He bounced back from it because he has always been a positive man.” 

She extended their gratitude to neighbours, friends and everyone who had donated to the Go Fund Me to date.

“We hope that you can help our dad in slowly starting to rebuild his life, his home, his workshop in the coming months,” the Go Fund Me read. “He has literally been left with only the clothes on his back, everything has been burned and destroyed.” 

Readers can donate by visiting the Go Fund Me page.