Art escapes country house blaze
Monday February 08 2010
Valuable pieces of art escaped damage when a blaze broke out in one of the country's finest stately homes, it has been confirmed.
Investigators are probing if an electrical fault sparked the inferno in the west wing of the 18th century Russborough House in Co Wicklow.
Several fire crews went to the property, near Blessington, and fought for about three hours to bring the fire under control.
The blaze caused extensive damage to the west wing, with part of the roof collapsing. Valuable pieces of art escaped damage because the building was being renovated at the time.
"The whole west wing is being restored so everything had been taken out," said a spokesman.
"The work is roughly a third of the way through, so was stripped down at the moment."
Initial examinations suggested a wiring fault in the roof may have sparked the blaze.
A Hollywood film crew led by Oscar-winning film director Steven Soderbergh had finished shooting scenes at the stately home about 48 hours before the fire broke out.
Knockout, which stars Ewan McGregor and Michael Douglas, is filming in Ireland for three weeks.
The mansion, which was built in 1741 and houses valuable fine art, antiques and silverware, has been targeted in several robberies.
