Man dies in tragic Castlebar fire

Man dies after fire in Castlebar apartment


Trevor Quinn

Gardaí have said that a fire which begun in the kitchen area of a flat in Castlebar last Wednesday caused the death of 33-year-old Colin Gillespie at his rented flat on Rush Street.
The owner of the premises which is located directly above Flynn’s bar, contacted emergency services at 4.40pm after being informed that a fire alarm was bellowing out in an upstairs apartment.
Firemen entered the living room area of the flat and discovered extensive fire and smoke damage. Despite repeated efforts to revive Mr Gillespie in an adjoining bedroom the Castlebar man was pronounced dead at the scene shortly after 5pm.
Mr Gillespie’s body was removed to Mayo General Hospital where a post mortem examination took place on Thursday last. A detailed forensic examination took place on the apartment and the source of the fire is believed to be an armchair in the kitchen area of the flat.
A garda spokesperson said the cause of death was carbon monoxide poisoning. He confirmed that they were not treating the death as suspicious.
The deceased man Colin Gillespie, was a son of Tom Gillespie, editor of the Connaught Telegraph newspaper, and his wife Mavourneen. The Gillespies are a well-known and popular family in the Castlebar area and there was widespread shock and sadness when news broke of the untimely death of the painter and decorator.
Mr Gillespie, who was pre-deceased suddenly by his brother Darragh in 2008, was laid to rest at the new cemetery, Castlebar after a Funeral Mass at the Holy Rosary Church on Saturday last. He is survived by his parents Tom and Movourneen, sisters Rowena, Emma, Ineka, Lenore and their families.