An elderly couple in Dublin had a tragic end following a fire inside their home

DUBLIN: An elderly couple has died after a fire ripped through their home. Michael Hurley (70), and his wife Beatrice (60), were died in a fire at their home at Beach Park in Portmarnock, Co Dublin.

It is believed that they went downstairs when a fire broke out. However, Garda is investigating the cause of the fire. A technical inspection of the incident was conducted yesterday. The couple has five children and a number of grandchildren.

Mr. Hurley had worked at Dublin Airport before his retirement and was an active member of the local community, teaching junior players of the Portmarnock Squash Club. In a tribute to him, the club said: “Mick was a founding member of the PSLC in the 80s and was a pivotal part of the growth of our little squash community.

The fire spread through the bottom half of the home and spread upstairs. “The house went up like a box of matches, it was like a tinderbox,” a neighbour said.

“At 10.15pm someone knocked at the door and said ‘get out of your house quickly; there’s a fire next door. They were out walking when they saw the fire. I was in with the grandchildren and didn’t hear a thing.”

“By the time we got out of our house, the downstairs windows had blown out and the fire had travelled upstairs. We stood outside for quite a while with blankets round the grandchildren. Then the emergency services told us we could go back home.”

“It’s tragic. They were a very nice couple. We’re in shock, it’s such a tragic loss. The house went on fire so quickly. Michael loved his sport and there was a lot of sport on last night.”

“I think he’d have been up watching TV when the fire happened. They weren’t the type of people to be in bed at that time. They were very active. It’s just such a sad, sad loss,” the neighbour said sadly.