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Father saves family dog during 'scary, stressful' hotel arson attack

Maria McCannand
Eimear Flanagan,BBC News NI
BBC Eóin McAlonan, a man with short, dark hair, looking to the camera on a street in Ballycastle. He is wearing a green crew-neck sweatshirt. There are steel barriers behind him and a church with a clock tower in the background.BBC
Eóin McAlonan said it was a stressful and scary experience for his young family

The father of a young family has described how he rushed into their home to grab their pet dog and personal belongings after the listed building next door was set on fire.

Eóin McAlonan lives next to the Antrim Arms hotel in Ballycastle, County Antrim, a derelict structure which was badly damaged in an arson attack on Sunday.

At the height of the blaze, 42 firefighters, two aerial appliances and a command support unit were at the scene.

McAlonan, who was out with his family when the fire broke out, said it was a "scary" experience and added he does not intend to return to his family home until building control experts tell him it is safe to do so.

The Antrim Arms Hotel, a white building. Antrim Arms is written in red letters above the door. There are bollards and a fence in front of it.
The aftermath of the fire at the former Antrim Arms hotel in Ballycastle town centre

'The whole place was up in smoke'

The father of two was out visiting relatives with his partner, their three-week-old baby and their 18-month old toddler on Sunday.

The young family returned home that evening to a number of missed calls from local businesses warning them about the blaze.

"We came home and the whole place was up in smoke and we just got the dog out just in time," McAlonan told BBC News NI.

"We went in and grabbed our things, grabbed the two children and the dog and went to my mother and father-in-law's house."

He described walking into his smoke-filled home as "stressful" but was relieved that no-one was hurt and he managed to take his loved-ones to a place of safety.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said the fire was reported to them shortly after 20:00 BST on Sunday.

Officers attended and closed a number of streets in the area while the fire service extinguished the blaze. All the streets have since reopened.

The PSNI have confirmed the blaze is being treated as deliberate.

Two firefighters aiming water from a hose onto the roof of the building.
At the height of the blaze, 42 firefighters were at the scene

The former Antrim Arms hotel has been vacant for more than a decade and the building was in a dilapidated state before the fire.

Cordons were put in place around it more than a year ago by the council over fears about its structural integrity.

Parts of the disused hotel date back almost 400 years and the property has been listed since 1981.

An application to demolish the property was refused last year.

Sian Mulholland standing in front of the scene looking at the camera. She is wearing a pink top and fleece and round glasses. Her hair is tied back. In the background, there are small crowds of people standing in the street.
Alliance MLA Sian Mulholland urged people gathering to watch the fire to go home

Local Alliance MLA Sian Mulholland said everyone in the town wants to see the building renovated and made structurally safe after the fire.

"The roof is completely caved in along the back of the wall and it just brings in other fears and further concerns about the structural integrity and safety of the building," she added.

A view of the side of the Antrim Arms Hotel, a white building in a town. Blue storage containers are blocking it off as are bollards and a fence in front of it.
It is thought that the roof at the back of the building has caved in

Local Sinn Féin councillor Cara McShane said on Sunday she was "deeply concerned by the devastating fire".

"My immediate thoughts are with local residents and businesses who will be affected by this incident."

The PSNI have asked for anyone with information to contact them.

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