The late Vinny and Tricia Farrell Ballymahon Gardai have confirmed that the fire that claimed the lives of a Forgney couple last week was accidental. Vinny and Tricia Farrell from Forgney lost their lives in a house fire at their home in the early hours. The couple's three children miraculously survived the fire which Gardai say started in the garage of the house. Local people woke up to hear that the community had lost two of its most respected and hardworking citizens. Vinny and Tricia Farrell lived in their farmhouse with their three children Jacinta (19), Alan (17) and Aisling (11). The couple died after being overcome with smoke in an upstairs bedroom which was located over the garage. Their three children were sleeping in downstairs bedrooms and managed to escape the fire. Eldest daughter Jacinta raised the alarm at around 4.30am when she awoke and realised that smoke was engulfing the house. She woke her siblings and the three fled the house before raising the alarm. Neighbours and local fire fighters rushed to the scene and battled desperately to rescue the couple from the burning house but such was the intensity of the heat and smoke that the couple could not be reached. The tragedy has deeply shocked the entire local community in which the couple lived. Vinny, 53, was a hard working farmer who had been a life-long supporter of Forgney GAA. He was a member of IFA and was involved with the local Fianna Fail organisation for many years. His wife Tricia, 43, worked with the elderly in the local community. A daughter of the later Peter and Nellie Dolan, she was a native of Tashinny originally. The shocking news left the local community in disbelief. In the following the fire, large crowds came to the home of Vinny's brother Joe in Pallas. It was from here that Vinny and Tricia's remains were removed on Friday evening. Huge crowds attended the removal and funeral mass at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Forgney at the weekend to sympathise with the couple's family. President Mary McAleese was represented at the funeral mass by her Aide-de-camp. Five Guards of Honour commemorated the couple and their lives at the Removal: the Ballymahon-Forgney GAA Minor Club, students from Ballymahon Mercy Secondary School, pupils from Colehill National School. They are also survived by Vinny's mother Alice; his brothers Joe, Mel, Alo and John and sisters Nuala, May, Irene, Eithne, Vera and Una; Tricia's sisters Mary, Kitty, Nellie, Agnes, Ann, Bernadette and Marian; extended family and a wide circle of friends. Courtesy of the Longford Leader January 2004 Tweet

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