Community rallies after woman loses everything in house blaze

Clothes dryer went on fire under the stairs

A FUNDRAISER launched to support a Tuam woman who lost everything in a devastating house fire has raised over €23,000 in a week.

A mother of three and grandmother to five, Colette Mills’ home on Dublin Road in the town centre was destroyed by the blaze on Monday, August 17.

It took away almost everything she owned - her home, clothes, personal belongings and 37 years of the family's memories and mementos.

The loss has been accentuated by Colette's ill health. Just over a year ago she was diagnosed with lung cancer. Tragically, the stress of treatment led to Colette forgetting to renew her house insurance.

“She was diagnosed with lung cancer in July last year and has been through chemotherapy and radiation,” Stephanie Joyce, daughter of Colette told The Tuam Herald.

“It has been a tough year for her, and all of us, as she is struggling with her health. This home was her place of comfort like anyone else and now she has lost that comfort,” she added.

Colette has had difficulty sleeping due to her cancer treatments and medication and was awake early that Monday morning when the fire broke out.

“I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to put the dryer on and went into the kitchen to have a cup of tea and read a book,” recalled Colette.

She was sitting in the kitchen when she smelled smoke and thought one of the kitchen appliances was running. So, she started unplugging them all.

“Not for a second could I think that my dryer would be on fire,” she said.

The house quickly filled with smoke as the stairs caught fire. Somehow, Colette managed to make her way out of the house in time to save her life.

“There was so much smoke that I couldn’t see anything. I was touching the glass and the walls to feel the door handle and finally got out of the house,” recalled Colette.

She ran to a relative who lives nearby and asked them to call the fire brigade.

The fire brigade along with the gardaí and emergency services arrived at the scene within 15-20 minutes.

Although the fire was quickly brought under control, the inside of the house was decimated.

The stairs, kitchen and all her belongings on the ground floor were burnt. The blaze blew out the windows and travelled outside causing damage to the garden furniture and plants as well.

“All I wanted was to have a lovely house for my children to grow up and come back to. I put every penny into it and now watching it like this is breaking my heart,” said Colette.

Adding to the stress and heartbreak is that due to the strain and pressure of Colette's illness and treatment, she overlooked to renew the house insurance.

“This is the first time ever that she does not have house insurance. She was struggling with her health and nobody thought about the insurance,” explained Amy Halion, Colette’s daughter.

Left with no other support, the family has turned towards the community to seek assistance to help their mum rebuild her life and provide her with a safe and comfortable space to get back on her feet.

“The fundraiser is just to provide her some hope that she can get back to her independent life and maybe return to her home in future,” emphasised Amy.

The Go Fund Me page setup for the fundraiser has received great support from the community. At the time of publication, it had already raised more than €25,000.

The family is urging anyone who is in a position to donate, help them provide their mother some security and help her rebuild her life.

Her daughter’s Amy and Stephanie are grateful to all individuals who have come forwards and offered help in one way or another.

A donation towards Colette’s fundraiser can be made by visiting: www.gofundme.com.