TWO FIREMEN WERE attacked and hospitalised while attending to two house fires in Limerick city on Wednesday night.

The incident happened shortly after 8pm when Limerick Fire Brigade dispatched three fire engines and a crew of twelve firefighters to attend to two house fires at Salvia Court.

As firefighters began work on the blaze they were attacked by a group of youths throwing rocks.

Although the Fire Service Incident Commander drew back from the incident and requested assistance from the gardaí, two fire fighters were injured at the scene and the windscreen of a fire engine was struck by a large rock and broken.

Damaged

The injured firemen were taken to the Mid-Western Regional Hospital for treatment and were discharged around 12 hours later. A spokesperson for Limerick Fire Brigade said, “they will be absent from work while they make a full recovery and the damaged fire truck has been taken out of service and is awaiting repair”.

Crews from Limerick City Council Fire and Rescue Service continued to deal with the fires after the attack and spent over three hours at the scene.

Michael Ryan, Limerick City Council’s Chief Fire Officer has strongly condemned the violence:

The attack on our fire fighters is shocking and disgraceful. The crew that attended this call are all dedicated professionals who are proud that they save lives and property in Limerick.

Fire fighters like all emergency services personnel have a job to do and they deserve to be able to do it in safety, and without fear of assault.

Gardaí in Roxboro Road, Limerick are investigating the incident.

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