Latest news with #DesDeegan
The Journal
10 hours ago
- The Journal
Man killed after explosion and fire at house in Co Roscommon named locally as Des Deegan (72)
LAST UPDATE | 1 hr ago TRIBUTES ARE BEING paid to a devoted partner who died in a Roscommon house fire overnight. The man has been named locally as Des Deegan, aged 72. The fire happened at a housing estate on the Boyle Road near Frenchpark village, which is around 30km north of Roscommon town. Gardaí and emergency services responded to the scene. Gardaí were made aware of the incident at 7.15pm, a spokesperson said, and the fire was extinguished by fire services. Emergency services are understood to have responded to reports very quickly. Roscommon County Council said fire units from Ballaghaderreen and Boyle Fire Stations numbering 20 personnel responded to the scene. Gardaí, ambulance staff and an air ambulance also attended the scene. Specialist excavation equipment was used at the scene to assist in emergency operations. Smoke from the blaze could be seen from a great distance away, and it is understood that local residents heard an explosion immediately before the fire. The aftermath of the blaze today. Courtesy of Shannonside FM Courtesy of Shannonside FM The scene remains sealed off for technical examinations and enquiries are ongoing. Gardaí are investigating to determine the cause of the fire, which is not yet known. Locals said that Mr Deegan, who was originally from Dublin, was a devoted partner to Alice Hetherton (63). The couple had lived at French Park for the past 25 years having met in London and lived in Kerry for a number of years previously. Tragically, Ms Hetherton suffered a serious bleed on the brain and an aneurysm in 2023 and as a result was admitted to a nursing home in the area in July 2024. Mr Deegan had launched a campaign locally to adapt the house and bring her home and had set up a Go-fundme page in April of this year. Advertisement Locals say he had spoken on local radio about his campaign on a number of occasions. To date the fundraiser has raised almost €7,000. 'Terrible tragedy' Independent councillor for the area Micheál Frain, who is also the station officer at Ballaghaderreen Fire Brigade, described last night's incident as a 'tragic event', adding that news of the blaze has been difficult for the town of Frenchpark. He said his thoughts and prayers are with the man's family and the 'great community' of Frenchpark. Fellow local councillor Valerie Byrne said the news of the event has 'shocked everyone' and described the event as a 'terrible tragedy'. She also extended her condolences to the man's family. Independent Ireland MEP Ciarán Mullooly said last night that his 'heart goes out to all those affected by this horrific blaze'. A number of adjoining properties suffered structural and roof damage as a result of the fire. One neighbour, Bernard Finley, told Virgin Media News that the explosion 'rattled the whole village'. 'It basically broke the front part of my house nearly off,' he said, adding that debris from the deceased's home had struck the front of his home, despite being a good 60 metres away. 'It was crazy. That's all I can say,' Finley said. 'I'm still in shock over it. I haven't slept much last night thinking about the poor man.' Frenchpark parish priest Fr Michael Donnelly told Virgin Media News that he felt 'pure numbness, but yet, feeling lucky'. He said the green around the estate is always full of children and said it was fortunate that there had only been one fatality from the incident. With reporting by Sean Ryan, Muiris Ó Cearbhaill and Jane Moore Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
BreakingNews.ie
11 hours ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Man (72) who died in Roscommon house fire planned to adapt home for partner
Tributes are being paid to a devoted partner who died in a Roscommon house fire overnight. The man who has been named locally as Des Deegan (72) died in a fire at a house in The Oaks housing estate, Frenchpark, Co Roscommon. Advertisement Emergency services were called to the house in an estate shortly before 7pm on Wednesday evening Locals said that Mr Deegan who was originally from Dublin was a devoted partner to Alice Hetherton (63). The couple had lived at French Park for the past 25 years having met in London and lived in Kerry for a number of years previously. Tragically Ms Hetherton suffered a serious bleed on the brain and an aneurysm in 2023 and as a result was admitted to a nursing home in the area in July 2024. Advertisement Mr Deegan had launched a campaign locally to adapt the house and bring her home and had set up a Go-fundme page in April of this year. Locals say he had spoken on local radio about his campaign on a number of occasions. Speaking at the time he said'' I've started this fundraiser on behalf of my partner Alice Hetherton, formerly of Oldcastle Co Meath. "Alice is 63 years old, she has worked all her life caring for others as a care worker in hospitals and nursing homes across the UK and Ireland. "Ironically Alice finds herself now in need of the support she has given to others''. To date the fundraiser has raised almost €7,000. In a statement gardaí said Fire services extinguished the blaze and the body of a man was recovered. His remains were removed from the scene to University Hospital Galway, where a post-mortem examination will be carried out. The scene remains sealed off for a technical examination. It is unclear what caused the fire, with witnesses reporting an explosion just before the blaze broke out. No funeral arrangements have been made as yet.
Irish Times
13 hours ago
- Irish Times
‘It was the most horrific thing': Man who died in Roscommon explosion planned to adapt house for partner
The man who died in an explosion in Roscommon had planned to adapt the house for his partner who is in a nursing home. The man who was killed in the incident in Frenchpark on Wednesday evening has been named locally as Des Deegan (72), originally from Dublin. He moved into the house approximately a year ago to be close to his partner Alice Hetherton (63), formerly of Oldcastle, Co Meath who is now in a nursing home. It's understood that the couple hoped to retire to Frenchpark, when Alice suffered a bleed on her brain in 2023. Only six weeks ago he set up a GoFundMe to modify the house so his partner could live with him in the house in Frenchpark rather than in a nursing home. The detached house in Frenchpark has now been reduced to a pile of rubble. READ MORE Around it in the Oaks estate are damaged roofs and broken glass. Almost 24 hours after the explosion, the smell of burning debris remains in the air. The home where Des Deegan (72) died was reduced to rubble at the Oaks estate in Frenchpark Residents say the dreadful tragedy could have been so much worse. The explosion happened at 7.10pm when children would usually be out playing in the green in front of the house. The children who were out playing had left the area 10 minutes previously. The explosion was so violent that it blew the window sills from Mr Deegan's home all the way across the green and it hit the front windows of the house 50 metres away. Sinéad Doran was getting her two children ready for bed when she heard the explosion. Looking at the broken glass which peppered her driveway, she said: 'There was definitely a guardian angel looking after our family. It was the most horrific thing I ever witnessed in my whole life. 'It is the luck of God that the window did not come in on top of us. We thought it was our car that exploded. We couldn't hear the bang. We could actually feel it. Our whole house shook.' She said the horror of the explosion was compounded by the realisation that she had just seen Mr Deegan enter the house just minutes before. Her partner Bernard Finlay raced across the road after he heard the explosion and called out if there was anybody there. 'I was thinking of him, but there were people screaming at me to get away. I was thinking of my kids. I needed to move away before things got worse,' he said. It took fire fighters four hours to release the remains of Mr Deegan from the rubble. Parish priest Fr Michael Donnelly said local people are 'numb with shock' about what happened and traumatised about how close the estate came to total catastrophe. 'Why the children weren't there and the sun beating down nobody knows. There was someone looking over them. If the children were there when the house blew up, you are looking at multiple fatalities.' A technical examination of the scene is continuing and investigations are ongoing.
