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ARSONISTS behind the fire which destroyed a community centre yesterday targeted the building because it had been used as an Orange hall in the past, it has been claimed.
It is understood that tiles were lifted from the roof of Barron Hall in Glengormley and oil poured into the building before it was set alight at around 12.30am.
Firefighters managed to extinguish the blaze at the cross-community venue on the Antrim Road - however the hall was left completely gutted. A local community worker said the incident was "heartbreaking". And in a joint statement, the mayor of Newtownabbey, Alderman Paula Bradley, and Deputy Mayor, Alderman Tommy Kirkham, also condemned the attack "The hall has been at the centre of much positive cross-community work in Glengormley, providing facilities for all sections of the community," they said. However, Mr Kirkham went on to claim that the fire was the latest in a growing series of incidents. "This is a very worrying development in the run-up to this weekend's festivals and bonfires," he said. "Over the past few weeks there have been attempts to draw young people from the Protestant community into street violence, there has been widespread intimidation and we in the community sector have been appealing to the young people in our community not to react." He later told the News Letter: "There is little doubt that the hall was attacked because of its former use as an Orange hall." While police refused to be drawn on a possible motive for the attack, Chief Inspector Paula Hilman said those responsible had "no support in the community". "Many local community groups who regularly use the hall have been left with nowhere to meet, nowhere to hold their events or to get together as neighbours and friends," said the police commander for the area. She added: "It is not an exaggeration to say that people I have been speaking with today are genuinely devastated by what has happened here." Kathy Wolf, from the Newtownabbey Community Forum, said the hall had been used on a daily basis. "To get a phone call last night and arrive and see the fire tenders and police there and the smoke coming up through what was left of the roof has just been heartbreaking," she said. North Belfast MP Nigel Dodds said he was both "shocked and outraged". "I know the hall management committee has gone to great lengths over the years to make the venue open to all parts of the community in Glengormley and surrounding areas. I hope they will find some way of continuing that valuable work," he said |
