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Updated 2:30pm 9/2/17
TRIBUTES HAVE BEEN paid to the Cork couple who, along with a close relative, died following a house fire in the UK on Monday.
Named locally as Joe and Anne Whelan, it is believed the couple were visiting Joe’s brother Jim who lived in Hornchurch, east of London.
Jim is said to have been in ill health in recent months, and Joe and Anne had come to help take care of him.
The brothers were originally from Dublin, but Joe and Anne had been living in Cobh, Co Cork before going to stay with Jim, who had lived around London for much of his adult life.
A neighbour of Jim told the Evening Standard that the news was heartbreaking for the whole community.
They said: “He was a very close neighbour, this fire has broken the entire street.
His family came over to help him and they perished too – it’s just awful.
Another neighbour, Valerie Newman, said: “Jim was lovely, dead chatty and the fittest man for his age.”
Essex Live reports that firefighters were called to the ground floor fire at the house on Laburnum Avenue in the town at about 4am on Monday morning.
It’s understood that Anne died at the scene, while the two men who were removed to hospital later died from their injuries. She was aged 68, while Joe and Jim were aged 74 and 76, respectively.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Charlie Flanagan expressed his “deepest sympathies” to the families involved.
“I would like to extend my deepest sympathies to the family and friends of the three people who died following a house fire in Hornchurch in Essex, on Monday,” Flanagan said in a statement yesterday evening.
The Department of Foreign Affairs is providing consular assistance to those families at present.
The cause of the fire is not yet known. It was brought under control by the fire services in attendance, four fire engines and 21 firefighters, before 6am.
“My thoughts and those of everyone at the brigade are with the friends and family of the three people who have died following the tragic fire in Hornchurch on Monday morning,” London Fire Commissioner Dany Cotton said in a statement.
Firefighters worked extremely hard and did all they could in difficult conditions.
A Metropolitan Police investigation was launched into the cause of the fire and concluded that no suspicious circumstances were present.
“We are very sad that the community has lost three of its members in this very tragic incident,” said Chief Superintendent Sean Wilson of Havering borough police.
This appears to be through accidental circumstances. Our prayers and condolences go out to the families of those involved.
With reporting from Sean Murray
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Very sad that someones live can go so wrong that no one has noticed them missing for so long. And such an awful way to go. Poor guy.
They have missed them they just didn’t know this is how they ended up :(
Terrible state of affairs, poor man, obviously homeless person so nobody missed him…profoundly sad, may he RIP.
Unless it was the home owner who may not have had any concerned family members, either way a truly sad passing in such a built up area surrounded by people yet so alone :(
There was a time when community existed, people knew and looked out for each other.
Long gone NorahB,There is still some of us left though.Good to see you think same as i do :)
God bless you and your family.
Rest in peace to the poor man :( truly heartbreaking to think he lay there.Deepest condolences to his family :(
Hard to believe its been there for nearly 4 years. Not one nosey so n so had a peep in. Strange
sad, yet ridiculous, why hasn’t anyone tried to contact that person? no neighbours or anything?
It was a derelict house so maybe a homeless person. Perhaps he was on the missing persons list? We don’t know yet, but whatever the circumstance it terrible sad that someone should die like this.
Even if he/she was homeless, no one should die like this, as you said, however someone should check such houses, well everyone’s clever after such loss.
Of course Joanna, in the ideal world that would happen. Maybe even in a small town, but in a city it’s easy to become lost, too easy I suppose.
We will all know to morrow.. V sad..
Am sure he is in heaven for the last 4 years
Yeah…heaven…after what must have been a virtual Hell on earth. Good luck with that Mags.
If he was a homeless person, has no other homeless person tried that house? Can a house be vacant for four years without anybody checking who owns it?
The Family will have done peace as they have gone through Hell…
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