Opinion

Deep shock following Derrylin fire tragedy

There is a profound sense of shock and distress following the appalling tragedy that unfolded yesterday in Derrylin, Co Fermanagh.

News that a terrible fire had claimed the lives of three people in this quiet, rural area was quickly followed by a statement saying that police believed the blaze was started deliberately.

The PSNI also revealed detectives had arrested a 27-year-old man on suspicion of murder.

At this stage of the investigation, details are understandably sketchy although it is understood those who died were from the same family and a child was among the victims.

It is also being reported that the family originally came from England and had lived in Derrylin for just over a year.

The full circumstances of this horrific incident are being investigated by police with fire and forensic staff examining the scene.

But it is all too apparent from the charred remains of the detached bungalow where the family died that this was an intense and destructive fire.

It is also clear that local people made desperate efforts to save the occupants of the house with neighbours using a sledgehammer to try to gain access to the bungalow without success.

According to Fermanagh and South Tyrone MP Michelle Gildernew, those who mounted the rescue attempt were left badly shaken by the tragedy. However, all those involved deserve to be commended for trying to assist the victims of the inferno.

The suspicion that this fire was started deliberately will inevitably revive memories of the awful events at Lammy Crescent in Omagh ten years ago when Arthur McElhill murdered his partner, Lorraine McGovern, and five children aged from 13 years to nine months.

As police piece together the last hours of the family who lost their lives at Derrylin, it is important that anyone with information comes forward.

Meanwhile, the thoughts of this close knit village and the wider community will be with friends and relatives who have been given the most devastating news imaginable.