Member's statement: Faughan Valley High School: Arson Attack
Member's statement by Mr Gary Middleton on .
- MLA
- Mr Gary Middleton
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 4 March 2024
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Faughan Valley High School: Arson Attack
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4254009
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I rise to speak about an issue that, unfortunately, arose once again in my constituency last night when arsonists attacked the former Faughan Valley High School site. Unfortunately, 50 fire crew, several water-pumping appliances and a command unit were required to deal with the situation. The issue is serious because somebody could have lost their life, but there is a wider issue regarding dealing with derelict properties, particularly those such as the old Faughan Valley site. Last night, residents close to that site were, unfortunately, told to keep their windows shut and stay in their property whilst fire crews dealt with the situation. Had there been an incident anywhere else in the city, the fire crews, which are already stretched, would have struggled to deal with it. Derelict properties blight all our communities. There is serious frustration, particularly among residents who live near to those properties, with the speed at which these issues can be dealt with. The Faughan Valley site has been sitting vacant for well over a decade, yet we are seeing no progress. Over the next number of weeks, I will encourage not only all those public bodies to show leadership in dealing with derelict properties but investors, including private investors, to come forward with ideas to improve our communities.
213 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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