Investigations are continuing into what may have caused a house fire in Co Louth that at one point had 23 fire personnel working to bring it under control.
It was later discovered that military memorabilia were in the house and some of the items, possibly grenades, led to an army bomb disposal team being asked to ensure the scene was safe before the fire crews could complete their work.
The fire, in a large house near Castlebellingham was first spotted just after midnight on Saturday morning.
A spokeperson for the fire service confirmed that crews from Dunleer, Dundalk and Ardee were required and said, “When the crews and tenders arrived they found that both people in the house had been able to leave it although one had jumped from an upstairs window.”
It is understood the house is rented and the spokesman said that, “It was unclear if there were others in the building so crews wearing breathing apparatus had to conduct a number of searches while the fire continued.”
“After more than an hour, a further crew was called from Ardee while a water tanker and hydraulic platform went to the scene from Dundalk.” The crews began to leave the scene about 4am as the fire was being brought under control and as the fire abated, “a display of ammunition and military items including bullets and grenades was noticed at the house,” the spokesman said.
The gardai and fire service requested the services of the Defence Forces army bomb disposal team who spent a number of hours at the scene before removing some items and declaring it was safe for the fire crews and gardai to return.