Dry cleaners is razed to the ground by fire

Investigations are continuing to establish the cause of a fire which gutted a dry cleaning premises in the Galway city centre yesterday morning.

The Shannon Dry Cleaners premises on Prospect Hill was razed to the ground in the fire, which was discovered at around midnight on Tuesday.

As a result of the blaze, a structural engineer from Galway City Council had to carry out a survey of the roadway, amid fears it could collapse into the old Galway-Clifden railway line which runs under part of Prospect Hill.

A Garda source said the investigation into the cause of the blaze will be particularly complicated, because chemicals used in the dry cleaning process would have acted as an accelerant and caused the fire to spread.

Gardaí passing the building on a routine patrol spotted smoke coming from the building, and raised the alarm.

Four units and a water tanker from Galway Fire and Rescue Service fought the blaze until around 5am. The road had to be closed until later that morning, and the homes of nearby residents – including some in Forster Court behind the premises – were evacuated.

One firefighter commented that the blaze spread across the building faster than any he had seen in his 30 years of service.

Tens of thousands of euro worth of customers’ garments – including wedding dresses left in to be cleaned and preserved – are believed to have been destroyed in the fire which gutted the Shannon Dry Cleaners premises this week.

Expensive specialist cleaning equipment was also destroyed.