Thatched home burned to the ground leaving family homeless is restored by locals

A crowd of local volunteers rallied around the Zanni family after a chimney fire destroyed their Co Galway thatched cottage and left them homeless.

"We'll show these f***ers in Dublin how it's done," was the cry of local politician Michael Fitzmaurice after hearing of the destruction of the thatched cottage of Jeremy and Melanie Zanni in March.

The couple and their 9-year-old son Finn were left homeless when a chimney fire destroyed their home in Fartown, Glenamaddy, in Co Galway. Because of the thatched roof on the cottage, the family had been priced out of home insurance and so were at a loss when the fire raged through their home.

Everyone from a 75-year-old carpenter to a roofer in retirement has gathered together, however, to put a roof back over the family’s heads less than a month since the fire.

"It's a beautiful story — it restored my faith in ­humanity big time,” Jeremy Zanni told the Irish Sun.

"It could have been awful until Michael stepped onside and turned it into a beautiful story.

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The destroyed house. Image: The Fartown Phoenix/Facebook.

"It was while the cottage was still burning and I was still firefighting so I didn't even pay any notice, it was surreal.

"But Michael stepped in and said 'we'll show those f***ers in Dublin how it's done. We're going to rebuild your house in no time, this is how we do it in the West.' It was surreal."

The Roscommon-Galway Independent Deputy Fitzmaurice said that he first heard about the fire from a neighbor and soon got to work gathering together locals to come and help rebuild the home from scratch.

"I drove up to the house that day and they were distressed, as you would be, and I said to them, 'We'll put people together that will put your life back together again,'" Fitzmaurice told the Sun.

"We got local guys who would be in the building game and retired guys voluntary and we went to different building suppliers and companies and we got most of it sponsored by people.

"We put in the raft three weeks ago today and the block layers came and done it voluntary and the roofers did it voluntarily and the plasterers are the same.

"I have been up on the roof helping the guys and there has been many a night where I've gotten home and been up there for an hour or two.

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Image: The Fartown Phoenix/Facebook.

"The other night, I called up at 11 o'clock and the guys were just finishing. I'm organising all the different bits and I'm not saying it's the biggest project in the world but it was great to see a local community, what they've done for people.

"There's a lot of talk about rural Ireland and how they deal with people from different nationalities, but this will show you what these people have done in a local area to help people that were in distress.

"There's no point in saying it — but if that wasn't done, I don't know what would have happened because they had nowhere to turn and their families are in France."

The TD also took the opportunity to hit out at Irish Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy over the current housing crisis, which he believes has been made more complicated than it needs to be.

"I don't know why we are huffing and puffing about building a lock of houses,” Fitzmaurice added.

"If you go back on my Dail speech on housing, I don't accept at all this craic — to build a house isn't complicated. It's what we make complicated with paperwork and bulls***.

"I built my own house 20 years ago in six weeks and it's bigger than this one. I believe if you put your team together, coordinate it properly, line it up, where there's a will there's a way."

"We lost our house and people rallied together and stopped in their tracks to help a neighbour in need like superheroes,” Jeremy continued.

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The restored home. Image: The Fartown Phoenix/Facebook.

"And afterwards they will put their capes and their masks back in their pocket and go back to their normal farming or building daily life, as if nothing ever happened.

"I have said thanks a 100 times and they look at the building and say it's grand, it's mighty.

"It restored my faith in humanity big time. It's incredible. Five minutes on site and you understand how crazy the whole thing is.

"Something is looking out for us. I'm not religious or superstitious or spiritual but I'm starting to be after what is happening, there is a higher force at stake.

"The thank you party is going to be the biggest party Fartown has ever seen because there are so many people to say thank you to.

"All them tradesmen, a good third of them Michael brought out of retirement, the roofer, the plasterer is 75 years old and works out of goodwill, and they work as if they are 20 years old.

"And the craic on site, I've never heard so many good puns and bad puns and jokes, you don't want to be sensitive or easily offended on site because the craic is mighty.

"It's all done in good humour. These are friends for life, we will never be able thank them enough but the only thing we know they won't refuse is a good feed and a good drinking session, this I know they will accept."

The restoration work is being tracked here if you wish to find out more.