City market devastated in huge blaze.
SHOCKED traders watched in disbelief last night as fire ripped through Cork City's award winning Princes Street Market for the second time in six years putting at least eight stallholders out of business.
In a cruel twist of fate, the blaze caused £150,000 damage to a half million pound renovation ordered by the corporation — it won the Europa Nostra architectural award — after the market was gutted on Thursday, June 19, 1980.
Ironically, firemen were again forced to break through security gates in a desperate bid to stop an outbreak that threatened the heart of the City. The presence of a strong fire preventive division wall between the Princes Street Market and the Grand Parade Market coupled to the valiant efforts of firemen prevented the blaze from spreading.
By the time Cork Fire Brigade was alerted the Princes Street Market was still alight.
Cork Fire Chief Capt. Cathal Garvey estimated that the fire destroyed one-third of the market, including the entire rear section of the upstairs balcony where four stalls were located, part of the roof and four stalls on the ground floor.
The fire broke out at about 6 p.m. in a corner of an upstairs sportswear shop and spread quickly to other shop units along the rear of the balcony. At its height flames were seen shooting towards the roof.
Firemen were alerted at 6.07 p.m. When five units under Capt. Garvey arrived at the scene, the blaze had gripped the balcony section and the roof. Within 15 minutes the outbreak had been brought under control.
Twenty firemen fought the fire from the Princes Street and Market Parade directions. In fact firemen, assisted by Mr. Dermot O'Connor, son of a fruit and vegetable trader, had to force open the anti-vandal security gate at the Market Parade to gain access to the balcony.
The fire brigade's snorkel was on hand to survey the scene from a height to ensure that the outbreak did not spread to other premises in the city centre. Large crowds gathered in the streets where traffic became congested.
The first hint of trouble came as Mr. John O'Leary, part-oner of the sports shop where the blaze started, left the Princes Street Market shortly after 6 p.m. to go home. He met with a caretaker, Mr. Tom Buckley, in the Grand Parade Market. They heard the burglar and fire alarms sounding in the balcony on the Princes Street side.
Said Mr. Buckley: "When the alarms went off, I called John back. He went upstairs and tried to use an extinguisher. I went to get a fire hose. I couldn't get the hose upstairs because the stairs was on fire.
"Just before the alarms went off, I heard a loud bang. You could call it an explosion. It was heard outside in Princes Street."
Mr. C'Leary said he failed to operate the extinguisher and added: "We did our best to do what we could. Everything happened so fast."
At. that stage, another worker in the market, Mr. Philip O'SuIlivan, telephoned the fire brigade.
As darkness fell many of the stall holders had arrived to retrieve their merchandise including meat, fruit, vegetables and poultry.
Traders did not hide their frustration as their livelihoods suffered yet again.
Mrs. Eileen Kearns, whose family has run a fruit and vegetable stall for the past 40 years, complained: "We were told it would never happen again. We were told that the timber was fire-proof. The last fire already hit the business. Since then we have been barely existing."
Orginal report By VINCENT POWER