Two teenage girls were overcome by fumes when a fire broke out in the disused clothing factory where they were sleeping on August 30th, 1997, Dublin City Coroner's Court heard. The jury at an inquest earlier this week into the deaths of Ms Caoimhe Wall (15), of Valeview Drive, Finglas, and Ms Sara Jane Lawrence (16), of Mulroy Road, Cabra, returned verdicts of accidental death.
The State Pathologist, Prof John Harbison, said a post-mortem examination showed the girls were overcome by fumes from the fire. They did not suffer serious burns.
Mr Peter Fitzgerald said he was "sleeping rough" at the time. He met the girls in town on the afternoon before the fire and about 11 p.m. Caoimhe said she knew of a good place to sleep.
They got into the factory through a hole in the roof and went to the ground floor, where there was a large amount of discarded wool and fabric. They were using candles placed on cardboard for light. He woke to see six to seven-foot flames and tried to wake the girls, but they seemed drowsy. He ran to St James's Hospital to raise the alarm but the fire brigade arrived too late to rescue the girls.