The number of people killed in fires in the Republic has fallen to its lowest level in a decade.
New figures published by the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government show a total of 16 individuals were killed in fires in 2019.
It is the lowest recorded annual figure of fire fatalities in the past decade and down from a peak of 42 in 2017.
The annual number of fire fatalities has averaged 30 over the period.
All fatal fires recorded last year involved single deaths with no multiple fatalities in any incident.
There were three each in Dublin and Cork with two in Galway with single cases in eight other counties.
As in previous years, a high proportion of victims of fatal fires last year were elderly with over 65’s accounting for almost two-thirds of all deaths.
Thirteen of the fatalities occurred in houses with two in apartments and one in a car in Co Clare where the cause was unknown but suspected to have been a case of self-harm by setting the vehicle on fire.
Bedrooms were the most common location where fatal fires started, accounting for six cases in 2019 following by the living room (four) and the kitchen (three).
Figures provided by fire services across the country show smoke alarms were fitted in eight of the 15 residences where fatal fires occurred.
However, smoke alarms were not working in four of the eight homes where they had been installed.
No smoke alarm was present in five properties, while fire service personnel were unable to determine if they were present in two cases.
The cause of the fire was unknown or undetermined in half of all cases.
Cigarettes were suspected of being the cause of fires in four incidents while electrical appliances and wiring were responsible for three deaths. A pot left on a cooker was responsible for a fatal fire in an apartment in Co Kildare.
Research published by the Health Research Board last year highlighted how alcohol was a factor in more than half of all fatal fires in homes in Ireland.
The study which examined 101 domestic fires between 2014 and 2016 that resulted in 106 fatalities found 51% of victims had alcohol in their blood.
Almost two-thirds of victims had blood-alcohol concentrations over three times the legal drink-driving limit.
The research also found older people, single people, men and those living in rural areas were at a higher risk of dying in a domestic fire.
The study found more than half of all fire fatalities were people aged 65 years or over, even though they only account for approximately 20% of the population.
HRB chief executive, Darrin Morrissey, said there had been a significant and steady decline in the number of fire fatalities over the last 15 years since the initiation of community fire safety programmes combined with the increased use of domestic smoke alarms.
