This article is from page 12 of the 2006-03-07 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 12 JPG
FURTHER prosecutions against owners of licensed premises across Clare over fire safety issues are pending according to Clare County Council.
The Council’s Director for the Environment, Ger Dollard said he “very much welcomed” last week’s fine of €1,500 on Ennis hotel nightclub, The Queens, for breaching fire regulations.
At Ennis Circuit Court last Wednesday, The Queen’s Hotel pleaded guilty to failing on December 19, 2004 to ensure that doors, gates and other-like barriers to access escape routes were not secured in such a manner that they could be easily and immediately opened by persons in the place of assembly.
Judge Carroll Moran said, “The inability of the people to escape is a serious matter and it is only weeks after the anniversary of the Stardust tragedy and that puts into context the seriousness of this matter.”
Clare’s Chief Fire Officer, Adrian Kelly told the court that a joint team of five fire officers and eight gardaí carried out an inspection while a disco was taking place.
“The nightclub is normally a well-run establishment. We had received complaints of overcrowding, but we found very little,” he said.
Chief Kelly said that in 30 years of operating the business, The Queen’s Hotel had no previous convictions. A follow-up inspection on December 20 found that all locks were removed and the doors were opened, while by the following Wednesday, a new exit was in place that would make the premises much safer. Michael Collins BL, defending, said the doors were temporarily locked to prevent people accessing the hotel from the disco for a late drink.
“The company accepts that the doors shouldn’t have been locked.
Fining the defendants €1,500, Judge Moran said that he had to take into account the significant factors that the hotel acted quickly to address the matter and they had no previous convictions in over 30 years in the business.
After the court hearing, Hotel General Manager Maurice Walsh said that the doors were closed ten minutes in advance of when they should be by human error and they were not a main exit.
“The door in question was manned and operational until ten minutes before closing. The directors of the hotel have strict policies in relation to fire safety and have provided and continue to provide on-going fire safety training for all staff.
“Since this event, extra exits have been installed and all systems audited to ensure a similar occurrence will not take place. We continue on a regular basis to work with the Fire Officer to ensure all systems are within best code of practise for such venues,” Mr Walsh concluded.