THE culprits behind an arson attack on the company which prints almost all Irish racecards are known to gardaí, says Padraic Kierans of Anglo Printers.

Based in Drogheda, Co Louth, Anglo Printers has been in business for 35 years and employs 50 people. The family-owned business has a long association with Irish racing but that all came within two minutes of being wiped out on Sunday, October 2nd, when vandals set fire to the building.

Kierans reported: “It was a complete shellshock to us all. We had a very scary number of hours on that Sunday evening and only the quick-wittedness and diligence of the fire service saved the factory. The offices caught fire quickly but the fire brigade built a ‘wall of water’ to prevent the machinery from burning. The whole lot could have gone in another two minutes.”

The sales office, canteen, toilets and changing areas were destroyed but business continued on Monday morning. “Some staff worked from home, others shared offices and we put in some temporary toilets,” Kierans said. “We were determined to meet all our orders and all the staff were on board with that.

“We have managed to get by and it’s really more of a headache now, having to deal with insurance assessors and builders, instead of focusing on reducing energy costs, which was going to be my focus this winter. When you consider some tragedies that have happened recently, we were lucky. It’s not unusual for us to have staff working on-site on a Sunday night but thankfully nobody was in the building at that time.”

The local guards investigating the incident have strong leads. “I believe two minors came forward with their parents and admitted involvement. Others are due to be interviewed. We have CCTV footage and it looks like what began as a group searching for bonfire items descended into an act of criminal damage and ultimately arson.”

Kierans added: “We have had nothing but good wishes and support from all our clients. One company even offered us the use of their printing press. The good has outweighed the bad.”