Ireland

‘Terrible tragedy’: woman who died in Co Mayo house fire named

Victim was pronounced dead at her home in Kiltimagh on Monday afternoon

A woman died in a fire at her home in Kiltimagh, Co Mayo. Photograph: Brenda Fitzsimons/The Irish Times

Tom Shiel
Tue Mar 12 2024 - 09:18

A woman (93) has died in a house fire in Co Mayo

The woman, named locally as Mary Beatrice McNicholas, a retired nurse, was pronounced dead at her home in Kiltimagh, Co Mayo, on Monday afternoon.

Her brother, Oliver, who lives in a separate section of the house was hospitalised at Mayo University Hospital as a result of smoke inhalation.

“Mary B came from a well respected and popular family,” local county councillor John Caulfield said on Tuesday.

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“She was one of a family of ten who grew up in the Treenagleragh area, not far from Kiltimagh.”

Ms McNicholas, who was single, trained as a nurse in Britain before returning to Ireland to work in a Dublin hospital.

She moved home to Kiltimagh following her retirement.

A relative described Mary “as a lovely lady and an excellent nurse”.

He continued: “She was very private in her ways but was a wonderful character, very witty.”

Mayo Fire Services were alerted to the blaze midafternoon on Monday by local gardaí. A postmortem examination is due to be carried out at Mayo University Hospital.

A file is being prepared for the local coroner and an inquest will be held in due course.

Gardaí do not believe there is anything suspicious about the fire but sealed off the property for a full investigation.

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