‘There was such relief’: Five rescued after building collapses in Co Mayo

Five people avoided serious injury when a pub collapsed in a Co Mayo village on Tuesday.

A Health and Safety Authority (HSA) investigation is underway into the incident which happened at Duffy’s in Kilkelly shortly after 9am.

Five people who were staying in rented accommodation in the building were rescued from the wreckage and taken to Mayo University Hospital in Castlebar to be treated for what were described as non-life threatening injuries. A van parked on the road near the scene was partially submerged by falling rubble.

Cllr John Caulfield said the scene was emotional and tense when he arrived around 10 minutes after the incident.

“There were still children in the building. You could hear crying, the sound of victims being comforted,” he said. “We were made aware that an adult female was trapped on the ground floor. Firstly, the electricity had to be disconnected. After an hour the lady was safely removed. There was such relief amongst those gathered on the street.”

Parish priest Fr Joseph Gavigan said he was grateful that nobody was seriously injured and that he expected the community would rally round pub owners Kevin and Maureen Duffy and others affected.

Mr and Mrs Duffy, who have been running the premises since 1983, were said by a family member to have been shocked by what had occurred. Locals said the timing of the incident could have been much worse as there were well attended functions in the pub over the bank holiday weekend.