Community unites to support victims of shocking fire

Beauparc residents come together to care for mother and daughter injured and left homeless after terrifying blaze

A DISTRAUGHT community in Beauparc has come together to support their neighbours who were the victims of a devastating fire at their home last month.

What started out as a day of great celebration for Maureen O’Brien’s 80th Birthday on Wednesday 19th May ended in a harrowing house fire and life changing circumstances for both Maureen and her daughter Sinead who received serious injuries as a result of the tragic event.

Eighty-year-old Peter O’Brien was subsequently charged with damaging the house at his address and with alleged arson endangering the lives of two family members.

Mother and daughter face a long journey ahead to overcome injuries, tremendous emotional stress and financial costs, and the close knit community say that they are hoping they can help alleviate some of the burdens that they will face as the family begin to recover from this disastrous event.

Committee member Gordon McGuirk explains why it is so important for the residents to rally around the O’Brien family.

“As a community we know the people involved and it was a huge shock to see what the family were going through. We knew immediately that there was a long road ahead in terms of rebuilding a house or sorting out legal or medical costs and we knew Sinead was going to be in hospital for a number of months and may need long term care for her injuries.

“We decided to put a committee together and see what fundraising we could do in the short term because we see this as a long-term process.

“We started off with a GoFundMe page, we also hope to do an envelope drop to each home in the community for people with donation boxes at local shops.

“Some people in the community have already undertaken some fundraisers which is great to see everyone rallying together.

“As we go from strength to strength, we are thinking about organising a golf classic in September and a sponsored cycle in the new year to keep the funds going.

“The family is well known and popular members of the community so we want to do all we can to help. Maureen and Sinead are the only beneficiaries of the fundraiser.

“Sinead would be heavily involved in the local choir here in the church in Yellow Furze and is also involved in the Royal Meath Accordion Orchestra.

Gordon describes the shock in the community as the horrific events unfolded on 19th May.

“There was disbelief among everyone, and initially we didn’t understand the injuries sustained by Maureen and Sinead, they walked out of the fire and were here on the side of the road waiting for an ambulance to come and it was assumed that they were ok but it transpired that it was just the adrenaline keeping them going.

“My house is 50 yards away from Maureen and Sinead’s house and I was here working that evening. I had just finished a call for work when my daughter said there was smoke outside and that the house was on fire.

“I thought maybe it was just a chimney fire, so I came out to the front of house to see what was going on and the place was full of people. There was a lot of people that pulled into help.

“The Gardai came on the scene fairly quickly along with the fire service and ambulance.”

The gutted house is a sad reminder of the heart-breaking incident that changed a family’s life forever as Gordon explains:

“Every morning you wake up, it’s shocking to see it and hard to believe that this actually happened.

“Maureen is staying with a family member and Sinead is being treated in a Dublin hospital for her injuries and will be for a period of time until her injuries heal as best they can, she has had a number of skin grafts she has a long road to recovery ahead of her, she is still in a critical condition.”

To donate search ‘Friends of Maureen & Sinead’ on GoFundMe. All details of future fundraisers & drop off points for donations will be posted on the Friends of Maureen & Sinead Facebook page.