House fire victims suffer again at hands of thieves
AS if losing their home in a devastating fire wasn’t bad enough, Vicki Hynes and Darren Furlong have discovered that most of their surviving possessions were stolen from a locked garden shed beside the shell of their house.
Their landmark thatched cottage in Ballyedmond was destroyed by fire on St Stephen’s Day, and the couple have since found a temporary home in a nearby house. Their family and friends and members of the local community have rallied around them as they begin to rebuild their lives.
They locked some of their belongings which survived the fire in a shed next to the house, but they were horrified to discover on Friday, September 13, that the shed had been broken into and cleaned out.
‘We lost our lawnmower, tools, tool boxes, a work bench, a hedge strimmer, drills, everything,’ said Vicki. ‘ They also got into the house and took the copper hot water tank.’
A lock on the front gate was cut to gain entry and it appears a van was then driven in and loaded up. Attempts were made to break into the shed through the main door, but when these failed, they took a sharp knife out of the kitchen, and removed the seal from the shed window, and climbed in.
‘ We’re just gutted, we really are,’ said Vicki. ‘ Talk about kicking you when you’re down.’
‘ The community has been amazing,’ she continued. ‘ They put their arms around us, hugged us, and cried with us. They have given us clothes, food, vouchers. They have been so good to us.’
The local community has organised a benefit night in Harney’s, Ballyedmond, on Friday, January 27.
Vicki said that they have now made sure the house is cleared out. ‘At this stage, there’s nothing left to take,’ she said.
Investigating gardaí urge witnesses to come forward.