Traders in shock after a fire at Smithfield Market a popular shopping area in Belfast city centre.
Smithfield Market a covered shopping area in Belfast sold a wide range of goods including socks to sewing machines, books, furniture and pets now lies in ruins.
A fire broke out around three o'clock this morning. The fire brigade were alerted within minutes but were unable to prevent the blaze from spreading.
Generations of families have traded in Smithfield, many of the business owners were present this morning counting the cost of the fire. As one man explains when asked how much he has lost,
Everything. See we have no insurances. We can’t get insurance here in Belfast.
Another business owner estimates that the damage will be substantial,
Between seven and ten thousand pounds worth of stock.
One woman whose family have worked in the markets for a century dismisses the suggestion that sectarianism is behind the cause of the fire. She is not optimistic about the future,
That’s the end of Smithfield.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 7 May 1974. The reporter is Frank Dunlop.
