Bundoran tragedy remembered on 45th anniversary of Central Hotel Fire

Friday, August 8, marks the 45th anniversary of the Central Hotel Fire Disaster in Bundoran, a milestone which “brought sadness to everybody.”

The Donegal Democrat reported on the tragedy in 1980, commenting how people of the holiday resort were “numb, dismayed and horrified at the thought of that dreadful night in which ten people, including an 18-month-old baby, a family of four, and a young brother and sister, perished in a holocaust.”

Those who died in the fire were Jim and Anne Brennan, and their two children, Deirdre (6) and John (3) of Naas; Adrienne (13) and James (9) Kinsella, of Artane, Dublin; Mary Gallagher (55), Carrick, Donegal; Sadie Dowdican, Tullaghan; George Lazenby, Malahide; and the youngest victim, Nicola Lamont of Belfast. 

Of the ten victims who died, five were children. 

A memorial bench was officially unveiled in Bundoran in 2010 to commemorate the thirtieth anniversary of the tragedy. 

Cllr McMahon told Donegal Live: “It was a very sad time for everybody in Bundoran at the time that it happened. It brought sadness to everybody and sympathy to everybody who lost their lives in the fire.

“It was one of the most serious tragedies at that particular time in the country. 

“There are a lot of people who still talk about it, and we have the monument that was put up on Central Lane. It is talked about at particular times, especially coming up to the anniversary.”

Bundoran-based fisherman and builder, Sean Carty, was only a child himself when the tragedy struck.

He commented: “Within the older generation, everybody remembers it. There was an awful lot of lives lost. It was probably the biggest tragedy the town has ever had in modern times.

“The mood was sombre, as there were kids’ lives that were lost. It was heavy.  

“It sat for so many years derelict, like a holding site. It was like a monument for so many years.”

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The disaster struck during the peak of the summer tourist season in Bundoran, with the Central Hotel near fully booked on the evening of August 7. Only two bedrooms were vacant, with 60 guests checked in.

Built in 1885, the Central Hotel was one of the key landmarks of Bundoran, gradually expanding in size over the years. 

A popular cabaret show had just ended at 12.15am on August 8, and around 30 people were drinking in the main bar, with more in the lobby. A group of Citizen Band Radio enthusiasts was holding a meeting in the Commercial Room, and a group of young people was in the Cellar Bar

The fire broke out at 12.30am, and was believed to have started in the hotel bar. Within minutes of the start of the fire, the hotel was engulfed in flames, and as the fire spread, people who were upstairs in the building had to jump out of windows in a panic. 

At the scene within minutes were six fire brigades, who were able to prevent the fire from spreading onto other buildings in the street, but struggled to control the fire in the hotel. 

Very soon, trapped guests faced the terrifying question of whether to jump or be burned.  Kathleen McCombe, then 38 and of Strabane, told Donegal Democrat: “The choice was a very simple one.

“We could either jump or be burned within minutes, for the floorboards were already hot under our feet and the room was filled with choking smoke.”

Kathleen’s mother, Marcia Edginton, was first to jump the 20 feet to the ground, despite not even a blanket present to break her fall.

Then Kathleen dropped her eight-year-old son out of the window, before jumping herself. All three were taken to Sligo General Hospital, with Kathleen’s son being seriously injured and having to be detained in the intensive care unit. 

Rescuers and volunteers soon gathered to help how they could. Several people were on the ground to help catch people jumping from windows, earning praise from a local councillor, Joe O’Neill, for their “trojan work.”

The Donegal Democrat wrote: “Would be rescuers climbed drainpipes to reach windows in endeavours to assist the trapped guests. 

“Attempts to enter the burning building were defeated by dense smoke and intense heat. 

“On the street below, there were scenes of terror and panic as people frantically searched for missing children, relatives and friends.”

After the tragedy, the Minister for Agriculture, Ray MacSharry, visited the scene of the fire, and was shown the work of clearing out the debris. 

In the ensuing weeks, several calls were made for the Minister for the Environment, Sylvestor Barrett, and later Fergus O’Brien,  to set up a public enquiry into the fire. The hotel’s proprietor, Pat Barrett, maintained that the fire was started maliciously, and not the result of an electrical fault. 

The hotel lay derelict for a decade in Bundoran, a grim reminder of the tragedy for residents and regular visitors alike. It was eventually demolished, and a new hotel, rebranded as the Grand Central Hotel, was built. 

Many years may have passed since the tragedy in Bundoran struck; nevertheless, those who witnessed the scene will no doubt remember the blazing building of the Central Hotel, the many lives lost and the families that grieved.