Apartment block must be vacated, judge rules

A 187-APARTMENT complex at Donaghmede, Dublin, is to be evacuated on Monday by order of the High Court.

In a hearing yesterday the court was told the complex was a very serious fire safety risk, had significant structural deficiencies and had its insurance cover withdrawn earlier this week.

The president of the High Court, Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns, said the situation was “a very serious emergency”. He said he would grant the evacuation order sought by Dublin City Council, but put a stay on it until Monday, to allow the council find alternative accommodation for Priory Hall residents during remedial works.

The judge was told by a fire safety inspector that external walls would have to come off the building to render it safe.

The judge also made orders freezing the assets of developers Thomas McFeely and Larry O’Mahony, whose company Coalport developed the Priory Hall complex in 2006.

The judge directed the papers in the case be sent to the DPP, commenting there was no reason why the council or the taxpayer should have to bear the cost of this “disaster” for which the apartment occupiers were “totally blameless”.

On being told Mr McFeely would be back from the UK at midnight last night and was prepared to meet the fire safety inspector on Monday, the judge said that meeting would have to be held before then. He also ordered both men to appear before him on Monday morning.

Fire safety inspector Donal Casey told the judge he had been dealing with the Priory Hall development since 2008. From his first inspection he had been “horrified” by what he saw. Three fire safety notices were served in September 2009 and a programme of works to address serious breaches was agreed. But not all agreed works had been completed and the developers had been prosecuted and convicted at the District Court.

The earlier inspections were of common areas of the complex but in May 2011 the council’s housing department engaged consultants to inspect the apartments themselves, the council having bought some units, he said.

Mr Casey said when he saw the consultants’ report he was shocked, did two inspections of apartments and immediately reported to the chief fire officer. Due to defects, any fire that got into the external cavity wall could extend very quickly to the entire complex without any control or barrier.

The external structure was “totally and utterly inadequate” from a structural point of view, he said. “What was built out there” was “very different” to what had been agreed to under fire safety certificates issued for the development, he added.

The court also heard Mr O’Mahony was travelling back from Portugal yesterday. A solicitor who attended the court hearing said she had been notified of the court proceedings at 11.30am yesterday and had been unable to get instructions from the two developers. Some works had been carried out and the financial controller of Coalport had said works would be done on receipt of a report from fire safety consultants, she added.

Earlier, senior counsel Conleth Bradley, for the council, said the evacuation order sought was draconian but the intention was to put pressure on the respondents to carry out the necessary works.

The council’s solicitors had written to the company and two developers warning of court proceedings and had received a response yesterday from solicitors stating a meeting with a fire safety consultant and electrical contractor was still going on and when those experts’ views were received, proposals would be made. Resolution of the problems was also described as being “of the highest priority” to the respondents.