GARDAI believe arsonists were behind a fire which destroyed a house which Donegal County Council bought for a Traveller family of 13 in Ballyshannon.
The five bedroom house in the upmarket Parkhill area was completely gutted in the fire which broke out at 3am this morning.
Fire crews from Ballyshannon and Bundoran attended the scene but the house was destroyed.
No-one was injured and no-one was in the house at the time.
Last month there was controversy when local councillor Sean McEniff made comments about the family which were deemed racist by Traveller groups.
Cllr Sean McEniff denied he was being a bigot when he insisted that Travellers “should live in isolation.”
“Parkhill is a very settled community. I would not like these people (the family) living beside me,” he said at the time.
Today he stood by his views but condemned those who had burned the house.
“I did not in any way give any succour to any type of criminal behaviour,” he insisted.
However TD Pearse Doherty accused the Fianna Fail councillor of using language which was “incitement of hatred.”
The row over the house has led Deputy Padraig MacLochlainn to accuse other councillors of blatant bigotry and racism.
