Family 'traumatised' as fire destroys historic cottages in Limerick village
By David Raleigh
A family have been left "traumatised" after their historic family home was destroyed by fire in the heritage town of Adare today.
The thatched cottage, built in 1826 by Lord Dunraven, was gutted in the inferno.
A second cottage, due to be taking over by NAMA, was burned to the ground and serious water damage was caused to a third cottage.
The blaze broke out shortly after 1pm, just as a wedding was due to start across the road in the village's stunning 13th century Holy Trinity Abbey Church.
A total of 11 thatched cottages, which sit neatly in a row on the main street at Churchview, were built by the Dunraven family as staff houses.
The dwellings are one of the main attractions for the estimated half a million tourists that visit Adare annually.
Locals described it was a "horrible tragedy" for Jane and Henriette Benson, the occupants of one of two gutted cottages.
The sisters and their siblings Maria, Liam, David, Aidan, Thomas and Denis, only buried their mother and father in the past two years.
Willie Benson, a skilled roof thatcher, died last February, a year after his beloved wife Mary passed away.
"Jane and Henriette are very well known in the village. They have always been involved in community work, Adare Town Council and the Tidy Towns. They carried on their parents good work," said Maeve Martin Kelly, owner Adare Heritage Centre and PRO Adare Business Association.
"Jane worked in St Nicholas' School as a secretary for many years and only retired two years ago. Willie and Mary were a special couple and we're passionate about keeping alive the rich history of Adare. It's a tragedy for the Bensons," she added.
Another business person, who did not wish to be named, said: "It's horrible. Their parents both passed away in the past two years. Jane and Henriette are in shock. I'm sure they're just traumatised. They've lost their family possessions and of course their home."
Locals said the second cottage, destroyed in the fire, is owned by an Irish American businessman who resides in New York; and was to be added to portfolio owned by the National Asset Management Agency.
A woman, who had been renting the property in a caretaker role, and was preparing to move out, lost all her possessions in the fire after she had packed everything into boxes.
A third cottage, home to Lucy Erridge crafts, sustained serious water damage but was saved from the fire.
Brian Hayes, proprietor of the Blue Door Restaurant, located a few yards from the Benson home, but which escaped the fire, described the loss of the cottages as "bad for Adare and bad for tourism".
Adare is known as a location for celebrity weddings. Local hotels, The Dunraven Arms and Adare Manor, have played host to members of the British royal family, movie stars, and the world's top golfers for the JP McManus Charity Pro Am.
"Luckily no one was injured though. We get tourists from all over the world visiting for the cottages. They come from America, France, Germany...everywhere," Mr Hayes added.
The picturesque village was closed for most of the day as six fire crews from Limerick County backed up by their colleagues from the city, battled the inferno for several hours.
Gardaí described at one stage "traffic chaos" as throngs of motorists entered the village, via the N21, from Limerick and Kerry.
There were no reports of injuries.
An investigation is underway into the cause of the fire.
