Residents woke from sleep as blaze engulfs their homes

A WOMAN rescued from a house fire in Omagh has praised the actions of a local couple for saving her life.

Jacinta Mullan was asleep in the early hours of last Saturday morning when she was woken by bangs on her door.

“I Just ran out and by that stage the smoke had got worse and the fire was bigger,” Jacinta told the UH.

“It felt like a dream; I could have died. It was very distressing.”

The good Samaritans were husband and wife, Joe and Louise McCrory who immediately sprung into action when they noticed the blaze at two homes in Shandon Park.

They contacted the Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service (NIFRS) and attempted to alert the residents by banging their doors.

Louise said, “We were on our way home from town when my husband noticed the fire. He immediately shouted me to call the fire brigade.

“We banged and banged at the doors in attempt to alert the residents.

“We were terrified but didn’t think about it, we just wanted to make sure everyone was safe and ok.”

The fire, which occurred in the Shandon Park area of the Tamlaght Road, initially ignited in an external store – spreading to two homes and engulfing the dwellings.

One home was completely destroyed while Jacinta’s house suffered substantial fire and smoke damage.

NIFRS said they responded to the blaze at approximately 1.51am. Five fire engines, three support vehicles and two officers attended the scene.

The fire, which has been classified as ‘accidental’, took three and a half hours to extinguish, with fire fighters exiting the area at 5.30am.

Jacinta Mullan has also praised her neighbours who have rallied round to help replace the items lost in the blaze.

“There is a great community in Shandon Park, all the neighbours were very good,” she said.

“I didn’t have shoes or a cardigan and the neighbours were there for us, offering everything we needed and more – I was even offered a place to stay for the night.

“But now I have nowhere to go, everywhere is destroyed with smoke damage – the kitchen and roof is completely ruined.”

The treasurer of Shandon Park Residents Committee, Pauline McSorley has set up a ‘Just Giving’ page to help Jacinta and the resident of the second home destroyed in the blaze get back on their feet.

Pauline said, “The residents lost every single item they had, so I set up a ‘Just Giving’ page because I figured we all could help in some small way.

She continued, “People have also contacted the Shandon Park page on Facebook offering all kinds of furniture and essentials after hearing what happened.

“I would encourage everyone to help if they can, either donating furniture or using the crowd funding page.”

If you wish to contribute to the Just Giving page you can do so using this link: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/pauline-mcsorley-2?utm_term=3abNA395m. This link can be accessed also using the ‘Shandon Park Omagh’ page.