Blaze sparks Concern over Town’s heritage

A LOCAL historian has expressed concerns over the future of Strabane’s building heritage, following an early morning blaze at Vaccaro’s Cafe

Two floors of the Castle Street building were badly damaged when an electrical fire broke out at around 1.30am on Tuesday morning.

Thirty fire-fighters worked for three hours to bring the blaze under control and managed to save the external structure. Internally, the premises, known as ‘The Wembley Cafe’ suffered smoke and water damage.

Speaking following the blaze the Fire Service’s local station commander Kevin Lynch said that while there was no danger of the building collapsing, it was likely to remain closed for a period of time. Vaccaro’s served the people of Strabane for over 60 years and their fish dishes attracted custom from right across Northern Ireland. While the family have now all but left the town, Vaccaro remains one of Strabane’s most respected names.

Historian Michael Kennedy said this week that the town could ill afford to lose another significant building.