Two children die in fire, baby brother rescued

Athy Urban District Council is to inspect all its rented accommodation in one estate in the town following the deaths of two young children yesterday morning.

Jason Walsh (3) and his sister, Sarah (18 months), died in a fire at their home at Carberry Park, Athy, Co Kildare, at about 9 a.m. yesterday. A third child, Christopher (3 months), was rescued unhurt from the downstairs living room by a neighbour, Patrick Redmond (10).

"The mother was screaming that her baby was still in the sitting-room, so I just ran in, picked him up and brought him out," said Patrick. The baby is understood to be with his grandparents and in good health.

The children's mother, Patricia (23), raised the alarm at approximately 8.45 a.m. following the attempts of her husband, Aidan (27), to rescue the children. Aidan was found unconscious in the kitchen by a neighbour, Mr Val Mackey, and taken from the house.

Mr Mackey, a retired ambulance-driver, also attempted to rescue the two children upstairs, but was driven back by the flames, which neighbours say engulfed the house within 30 minutes.

Mr and Ms Walsh were taken to the accident and emergency department at Portlaoise General Hospital. Ms Walsh has been released and Mr Walsh has been transferred to St James's Hospital in Dublin, where his condition is described as "critical but stable".

Firefighters arrived at the scene at approximately 9 a.m. although the house had already been completely destroyed.

The family's next-door neighbour, Ms Betty Corcoran, said she became aware of smoke in her upstairs bathroom at about 8.45 a.m.

"I went outside and that's when I found Patricia screaming that her children were inside the house and there was a fire. There was no crying from upstairs."

Ms Corcoran described the young family as "very quiet, and the children, Sarah and Jason, were two beautiful children".

The couple were married two months ago although they had been partners for a number of years. They had been living in the estate since September 1998. Father Philip Denehy, who married the couple in Barrowhouse church just outside the town, described the deaths as a tragedy.

The cause of the fire remains unknown, and forensic experts will continue their investigations this morning. Initial reports suggest there was a smoke alarm in the house, but firefighters say it was completely destroyed by the fire.

Mr Tom Maddock, town clerk at Athy UDC, said fire safety in the 11 houses on the estate which the council lets would be checked "in the next few weeks". Carberry Park is one of the older housing estates in Athy. It was built in the early 1970s, said Mr Maddock.