Gardaí are satisfied that a house fire that claimed the life of a 71-year-old man in Cork city was not suspicious but started accidentally.
The man, who lived alone, was pronounced dead at the scene of the fire at a bungalow on Grange Road near Douglas on Cork’s southside.
Cork City Fire Brigade received a call at about 10.30am on Wednesday and three units attended at the scene where they found the house inundated with smoke.
Fire Officers believe the fire may have been smouldering for some time before the alarm was raised, as the rooms were filled with dense smoke on their arrival.
Michael Gaine funeral hears of ‘idyllic’ community struck by ‘something terrible’
A guide to who owns St Stephen’s Green: from wealthy Irish families to private clubs
‘An awful incident to witness’: 10 cattle killed in lightning strike in Co Cavan
The beaches here in Israel are full. Just an hour’s drive away Palestinians are starving
Firefighters using breathing apparatus entered the bungalow where they found the body of the elderly resident. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The man’s body was removed to Cork University Hospital for a postmortem examination that gardaí hope will establish the cause of the man’s death.
A garda technical team examined the scene and gardaí are satisfied that there was no foul play involved and the fire was started accidentally.
A garda spokesman confirmed gardaí had notified the coroner of the death and they would now begin preparing a file for an inquest at the coroner’s court.
- Sign up for push alerts and have the best news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone
- Join The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date
- Listen to our Inside Politics podcast for the best political chat and analysis