The full social and economic impact of the fire at the Tycor business centre, located in the old Jute Factory, will take years to be fully measured.
The response from the Council and the Government has been broadly commended, with a package of supports already agreed, and an intensive clean-up operation underway immediately after the event.
Residents of the Tycor area have found themselves in the middle of a public emergency. Despite this, they were in good spirits, and acknowledged the good work of the Council when they spoke to The Munster Express.
“Oh, it was scary,” said Joe Dempsey, who lives in the Tycor area. “The smoke got heavier and the flames started coming up over. The wind was blowing in the other direction, so we were lucky.”
Joe said that his water did not discolour, contrary to reports.
“Of course we were worried about the asbestos, for the last couple of days we just stayed in,” he added.
“We live bang in the middle of it,” explained a husband and wife who asked not to be named. “The clean-up they are doing has been very thorough and very impressive. We feel like the whole thing has been handled very well.
“But the night of the fire we were very anxious. We had bags packed ready to leave, and the fire brigade weren’t sure themselves.
“We could see the big embers going over our house and flying into the back garden. There was a lot of evidence of that the following day, and now they are cleaning that up which is impressive. They are not just hoovering but cleaning by hand, picking it all up.
“We also think it’s a terrible tragedy because this has become an arts centre, a place for small churches, music, and they are gone. It’s a sad day,” the couple said.
“Of course, the asbestos is scary and it’s a danger. But as you can see, they are doing a thorough job – they are prepared to get down on their hands and knees and do the whole length of the street.
“I do wonder how they will manage when they have to demolish the building and it is still full of asbestos that hasn’t burned. But I suppose that is maybe easier to deal with because it hasn’t spread. I think we discovered, like those Hollywood dramas, when it came to it, we did not want to leave our house,” the couple added.
AARON KENT
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme
