Watch: Investigation launched after fires were started in Cork city centre retail units
Gardai on Academy street, Cork following a fire in store yesterday. Picture: Eddie O'Hare
FIVE units of Cork City Fire Brigade attended the scenes of five fires at various retail stores across Cork city centre on Sunday evening.
Five city centre shops were targeted by arson, Cork City Fire Brigade’s third officer Gerard Ryan told The Echo.
The alarm was raised at 5.13pm when Cork City Fire Brigade received a call to respond to a fire on Patrick Street. The initial call was followed by four calls at the various other premises in the city centre.
Speaking to following the incidents, third officer Gerard Ryan said: “Five shops were targeted by arson. We think they’re all the same person but obviously we have to do an investigation with the guards. But at this early stage, from photographs and from descriptions, it sounds like it’s the same person.
“There seems to have been a route they were following.”
Mr Ryan said that resources had to be spread across all locations and that there was fire damage at all five premises.
“We spread our resources around to deal with them all. We got two or three calls at the start and then the fourth and fifth came in so as we were dealing with one, we got called to another and another. So, we sent extra resources to different ones,” Mr Ryan said.
“[One] was heavily smoke logged from the fire and [another] was also. It was a different stock in [another], it was hygiene products.”
Mr Ryan said all shops ceased trading from the time of the calls to the fire service and said that staff were evacuated from all five premises.
“In fairness to all the staff in all of the premises were excellent in evacuating the people and in first aid fire fighting so we praise them all,” Mr Ryan said.
He said that it is not yet known what was used to start any of the fires and that the Garda Technical Bureau are currently investigating.
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