Gardai investigate Hallowe'en fire incident

 

Garda are awaiting a technical examination of the scene before declaring whether a burning car which caused damage to nearby buildings in Belturbet on Hallowe'en night is in fact a case of alleged arson.

 

Fire services were called to the scene at Railway Road last night, October 31, shortly before 7.30pm when the alarm was raised that a vehicle was on fire.

 

While members of the local Belturbet Fire Brigade soon had the blaze under control, it was not before the burning vehicle had caused significant damage to the fascia and exterior of nearby residential buildings. Gardai had to deal first with attempting to save the properties before putting out the fire in the car.

 

 

No one was injured, as the owners of both properties are understood to have been away at the time.

 

Gardai arrived soon after and the area was cordoned off. The area remained cordoned off this morning, November 1, and gardai are continuing to conduct inquiries in the local area. They are seeking anyone with any information, including CCTV in the area, which may assist them in their inquiries.

 

                       

 

A spokesperson for An Garda Siochana told The Anglo-Celt this morning: “Gardaí are investigating a fire which occurred on Railway Road, Belturbet, Co Cavan on the 31st October 2017 at approximately 7:30pm. A car and 2 houses were damaged during the incident. The scene is currently preserved for examination.”

 

Meanwhile, the fire services were called to deal with several other incidents around the county.

They included a pile of straw that was set alight at Bough near Cootehill, to which the local fire services were called to deal with shortly after 10pm, and an unattended bonfire located at Cuilcagh Cropss between Virginia and Mullagh at around 8.30pm.