Fire crews responded to an early morning blaze that ripped through Bantry Enterprise Centre on Friday September 19th.

The fire severely damaged multiple units at Seafield, south of Bantry, writes Martin Steinmetz.

Just before 7am four fire crews attended the scene where the flames gutted the e-centre hub, owned and run by Cork County Council, which provides hot desks and meeting rooms for remote workers and entrepreneurs.

Units occupied by an accountancy firm and Bee-Clean laundry services were also badly damaged.

Fire crews from Bantry, Skibbereen and Schull worked for several hours to control the fire, with neighbouring businesses assisting in the clean-up.

Gardaí also attended and are carrying out a forensic investigation to determine the cause of the fire, and whether further investigation is needed.

A Fire Service source said: ‘On arrival the fire was well established and the fire had already broken through the roof over a number of commercial units.

Fire crews worked hard to contain the fire and to limit the spread of fire to further units.

‘The fire was brought under control by 8am but crews remained on scene removing sections of the roof and making it safe and damping down debris for a number of hours. Unfortunately, a commercial laundry was completed destroyed in the blaze and there was significant damage to two adjacent business
units.

‘All fire crews had left the scene by 12.20pm and the damaged units are being secured for further investigation and damage assessment.’

Bantry Cllr Danny Collins said he had been in contact with several of the businesses affected.

He said: ‘Thank god no one was injured or killed. The destruction at the e-centre was bad and the roof of the building caved in.

A fire has destroyed two units at Bantry Enterprise Centre. The cause of the fire is not yet known. Picture: Andy Gibson.

‘It’s a major blow because a number of businesses are still cleaning up and trying to get back to normal. It will take a while to process the insurance claims, but let’s hope we can get the wheels rolling again and people can soon return to work as usual.’

A Garda spokesperson said: ‘No injuries have been reported at this time. A technical examination of the scene is being conducted, which will determine the course of the investigation.’

A spokesperson for Cork County Council was unavailable for comment.