Ryanair condemns arson attack on houses occupied by its staff in Swords

Budget airline Ryanair has strongly condemned a "senseless" arson attack targeting several houses it owns and rents to its employees in Swords, north Dublin. The incident occurred early Tuesday morning, when seven homes in the Fosterstown area were set ablaze.

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mindless idiots

According to reports, perpetrators pushed burning wheelie bins against the front doors of the houses. Staff members, some of whom were asleep at the time, managed to escape through back doors. Fortunately, no injuries were reported, though the company described those responsible as "mindless idiots" and the act as a "criminal attack."

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hard to comprehend when these properties are rented to hard-working Irish and EU young people who work for Ryanair in-flight, engineering, and in our Swords head office and who pay their taxes here in the Irish state

Ryanair, a major employer in the Swords area, expressed its difficulty in understanding the motive behind the attack. The company highlighted that the properties are rented to "hard-working Irish and EU young people" employed in various roles within Ryanair, including in-flight, engineering, and at the Swords head office. These employees contribute to the Irish state by paying taxes.

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it’s difficult to understand what these morons thought they would achieve by this criminal attack

The airline has been purchasing houses near Dublin Airport in recent years as part of an effort to retain staff, given the severe accommodation shortage in the city. The damage to the homes was significant, with front doors destroyed in several instances. An Garda Síochána (Irish police) is investigating the incident, and the Dublin Fire Brigade and local Garda units responded promptly, limiting the damage to burns on the front doors.

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Gardaí and emergency services responded to report of a number of incidents of criminal damage by fire at a number of residential properties in Swords, Co Dublin, in the early hours of Tuesday 23rd.