‘Divine intervention’ says PP in praise of community support

Thomas Lyons

The garda investigation into two fires that took place at churches in Castletown Geoghegan and Kilbeggan continues as the communities have come together in support of the parishes.

Gardaí and emergency services attended a scene of criminal damage by fire at a premises in Castletown Geoghegan at 4am on Friday March 6, and gardaí also attended a scene of criminal damage by fire at a premises in Kilbeggan, earlier that morning.

“To be woken up in the middle of the night and for someone to tell you the church is on fire, it’s your worst nightmare,” Rev Barry Condron, PP of St Michael’s Church in Castletown Geoghegan, told the Westmeath Examiner.

Rev Condron said the incident could have been much worse: “I would call it an intervention of the divine, the man who would normally open up the church for us, Mike Garvin, would normally be down quite early, around 5 or 6 o’clock in the morning to open the church.

“He was just inspired that morning. He was up more than an hour earlier and decided rather than just wait around, he’d go down to the church. When he arrived, he found the church door burning, and saw smoke inside.”

The area of the blaze sustained significant damage: “The whole bottom of the church was on fire. The fact that he happened to be there earlier than usual and had his phone with him, which he wouldn’t normally have, felt like he was inspired to go down there at that particular time.

“When I arrived at the church, I could just see this large opening in the middle of the two doors from top to bottom. There were orange embers and smoke everywhere. I couldn’t tell if it was all coming from the door or if I was looking into the scene in the church behind it. It was horrific.”

The damage to the church could have been a lot worse if not for timely intervention: “The door itself was made around 1885, and it has been there ever since. It certainly did its job in keeping the fire at bay for as long as it did and preventing it from going further.

“The fire service told us we were only 10 to 15 minutes away from the flames of the door getting bigger and going upwards and igniting the rafters of the roof.

“They were beginning to lick against other parts of the porch. The church would have been completely burnt down.”

The attackers used accelerants to start the inferno: “They laid down microfibre cloth or towels, doused them in diesel oil and set them on fire. It was a deliberate attempt to burn down the place.

“Robert Troy (TD) said the garda have a definite line of inquiry, but I honestly don’t know myself. I haven’t been told anything further by the gardaí, and I’m just leaving them to do their investigation, rather than jumping to any conclusions.”

Rev Condron said there is a belief that the fire in the second church is linked: “We learned later in the day that a second attack was carried out in Kilbeggan Church, and I suppose it widened the scope. We were just puzzled at a random attack at a church in an area that is not on a primary route of travel through the country.

“The fact that there was a second church involved meant it was an organised attack on places that were singled out. It’s shocking someone would do such a thing in Kilbeggan, to the beautiful church that they only finished renovating in recent years.”

Recent work in Kilbeggan may have saved that structure: “During the renovations, Kilbeggan had a smoke alarm installed in the church porch at the door. The priest and locals got notification from the monitoring station at an early stage. Even though the fire didn’t get a chance to develop as much as it had in Castletown, it did cause significant damage.

“It was a similar pattern of rags and diesel, and there was a trail of diesel going from the door in Kilbeggan across the yard. That attack was carried out about 2 o’clock in the morning, whereas ours would have been around 4am.”

The attack did not impact on the community celebration of Lenten worship: “We were reopened that same day. It was the first Friday of the month, and we had our usual Masses there, and people had to walk in past the burning doors. We had a good congregation and strong celebration this weekend. We weren’t going to be put off in that way. The local community had been great, the way they came out to a meeting on Friday night and discussed what they could do, how they could help.”

The parish priest said many people have shown support for the parish since the fire: “I’m eternally grateful to Mike Garvin, who was the man who came across the fire that morning. Were it not for Mike and his actions, we would not have our church today.

“I would also like to express huge thanks to the Westmeath Fire Service. They’re heroes, and were here within minutes, we were fortunate in that some of them were on their way back from dealing with another call, and managed to be at the scene of our fire within 10 minutes or so. Normally, it would have taken them a lot longer to mobilise.”

“I’m very grateful to Bishop Tom Deenihan for his support as well. Robert Troy also came out yesterday morning to Mass in the church, and was there to listen to the concerns of people, as was Cllr Liam McDaniel.”

Rev Condron spoke of the effect of the incident on the community: “I just need to thank the amazing parishioners for turning out in droves, and for the people who have done so much over the last few days, and have offered so much help. From the youngest to the oldest, the people who came to the meeting, and to the Masses over the weekend, and the children’s choir.”

The historic impact of the attack is significant: “The church itself is so old, and in recent days, people that have examined the door, they’re not even sure what material it’s made from. They originally thought it might be pitch pine or oak, and they’re not quite sure what it is.

“Regardless of the makeup of the door itself, the fact that it has seen so many thousands of parishioners going in and out of it over the years. It’s the backdrop to so many wedding photographs and wedding celebrations and sacramental celebrations, First Communion, Confirmations, so many photographs have been taken at the door of the church that it’s probably a picture of it in everyone’s house in the parish.

“It would be sad if it can’t be repaired, but I suppose the most important thing is that it continues to be a doorway where future generations will continue to go. The door itself is only valid when it’s open and when people can walk through. Please God, that will always be the case,” Rev Condron concluded.