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GUTTED IN MINUTES; Family escapes explosion that destroys home.


Byline: JOHN FALLON John Fallon (born Cambuslang, 1940) was a goalkeeper for Celtic F.C., who was a member of the famous Lisbon Lions of 1967.

Fallon was taken on as a junior by Celtic, and soon was promoted to cover for the famous eccentric keeper Frank Haffey.
; SARAH Sarah or Sarai: see Sara.
Sarah

(flourished early 2nd millennium BC) In the Hebrew scriptures, the wife of Abraham and mother of Isaac. She was childless until age 90.
 BARDON

A FAMILY had a miracle escape when a massive explosion blew up their home in the middle of night.

Anthony Quinn
For other people named Anthony Quinn see Anthony Quinn (disambiguation)


Anthony Quinn (April 21, 1915 – June 3, 2001) was a two-time Academy Award-winning Mexican/American actor, as well as a painter and writer.
, his partner Eileen Brereton and her sons Kyle and Cory were not at the house when it was rocked by the explosion in Tuam, Co Galway late on Thursday.

But their home was gutted in minutes as a fire ripped through the bungalow bungalow [Indian bangla,=house], dwelling built in a style developed from that of a form of rural house in India. The original bungalow typically has one story, few rooms, and a maximum of cross drafts, with high ceilings, unusually large window and door .

Anthony told the Irish Daily Mirror yesterday: "Everyone is normally at my house but I decided to head out to play cards with the lads so Eileen stayed in her house in Tuam. My brother lives over the road and he heard a bang and he went out and he couldn't believe what he saw.

"He rang me and said 'where are you?', I said 'I'm out playing cards', he said 'you may get back home quick, there has been an explosion'.

"I knew it was serious because he was out of breath and was talking as if someone had died.

"I rang the Fire Brigade as I was leaving but by the time I got back to the house there was nothing left.

"Thankfully he was there or I would have had the shock of my life coming home to that." The blast ripped the roof off the house in Ballyglunin, Tuam, smashed the windows and demolished de·mol·ish  
tr.v. de·mol·ished, de·mol·ish·ing, de·mol·ish·es
1. To tear down completely; raze.

2. To do away with completely; put an end to.

3.
 the walls.

Anthony, 49, said the remains were like the aftermath of a bomb attack. He said: "It is a total wipe-out. Everything is gone, the walls were blown away. The kitchen is all cracked, there are a few walls still standing but with the strong winds, they are shaking.

"I am in total shock. I will never live in that house again.

"My dog Shannon was in the kennel outside the house and she heard the bang, she was terrified ter·ri·fy  
tr.v. ter·ri·fied, ter·ri·fy·ing, ter·ri·fies
1. To fill with terror; make deeply afraid. See Synonyms at frighten.

2. To menace or threaten; intimidate.
.

"She did a runner, we couldn't find her but she came back this morning." His partner Eileen said they were thankful that they were not in the house when the blow-out happened at 11.15pm on Thursday night.

She added: "The house is gone, it is destroyed. It went up in minutes.

"But all we are grateful is that none of us were in it. Nobody would have survived, we would have been taken out in boxes.

"There was a huge bang and within minutes the houses was up in flames and destroyed. It happened so quickly."

The house is about 25 years old but was extensively renovated seven years ago.

Eileen said: "The damage is terrible but the most important thing is that nobody was hurt. That's what we have to keep in mind."

Anthony said Kyle and Cory were in "good form" despite the explosion.

He added: "They haven't seen the house yet, I don't know what it would achieve to bring them to see it. It would only upset them. It doesn't bear thinking about if we were in that house."

The family are staying in Tuam as gardai investigate the cause of the blaze but it is believed it was started by a gas fire in the living room.

Mayor of Galway Tom McHugh said the family were lucky to have survived the blaze. He added: "This is nothing short of a miracle.

"They are very lucky that they were not hurt. We are all very thankful that nobody is hurt.

"Of course, there is extensive damage but you have to think on the positive side and it is nothing short of a blessing that there was nobody in that house because they would have had no chance."

CAPTION(S):

THE WINDOWS Frame melted due to searing sear 1  
v. seared, sear·ing, sears

v.tr.
1. To char, scorch, or burn the surface of with or as if with a hot instrument. See Synonyms at burn1.

2.
 heat of blaze CHARRED REMAINS Eileen Brereton looks at the devastation in Tuam, Co Galway, yesterday THE KITCHEN Burnt-out appliances bear scars of explosion and fire THE CONSERVATORY Twisted remains of room ruined in destruction THE LOUNGE Ashes and debris litter what's left of the room THE GARDEN Window blown 20ft by powerful blast
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Publication:The Mirror (London, England)
Date:Aug 15, 2009
Words:663
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