Two companies enter not guilty pleas to health and safety charges after Primark fire
Defence lawyers have entered not guilty pleas on behalf of two companies to health and safety charges arising out of the fire at Primark's Bank Buildings store.
A third company did not enter a plea as its legal team continue talks with prosecutors.
The charges do no relate to the cause of the fire.
The blaze broke out at the Royal Avenue premises in Belfast on August 18, 2018, while a £30million extension and refurbishment was nearing completion.
The Fire and Rescue Service said it first received a 999 call at 11am from a member of the public about a fire on the top floor of the five storey Primark building in the centre of Belfast.
Over 30 fire fighters, five fire appliances, a command support unit and an aerial appliance were drafted in to tackle the blaze.
It wasn’t until three days later that NIFRS announced that the fire at Primark had been completely extinguished.
But such was the scale of the disaster that 14 businesses were forced to close their doors because of huge structural damage to the Primark Building.
At Belfast Crown Court on Friday, a defence lawyer told Judge Donna McColgan KC that he was entering a not guilty plea on behalf of Bennett Management Contractors (GB) Ltd, of Central Street, London, to charges of failing to ensure the health and safety of employees at work and failing to ensure the safety of workers not in their employment.
A barrister for Boyd Project Services Ltd, of Roguery Road, Toomebridge, Co Antrim, told the court that he was entering a not guilty plea to a single charge the company faced of failing to ensure the safety of non-employees.
Defence counsel Charles MacCreanor KC told the court that he was representing AF Roofing of Knocknastooka, Grange, Youghal, Co Waterford, which faces two charges of failing to ensure the health and safety of employees at work and failing to ensure the safety of workers not in their employment.
Mr MacCreanor said that he was in "ongoing discussions'' with the prosecution about the case and asked the court for a number of weeks to allow for those discussions to continue.
A director of AF Roofing was present in the body of the court but was not asked to enter a plea to the two charges to allow discussions to continue between his counsel and prosecutor Philip Henry.
Judge McColgan agreed to adjourn the case until November 17.
In June this year, the Public Prosecution Service in Northern Ireland announced its decision to start criminal proceedings in relation to the incident.
A PPS statement said: “The PPS has taken decisions to prosecute three companies for alleged health and safety offences following a fire at the Primark building in Belfast city centre on 28 August 2018.
"The decisions follow a careful consideration of all the available evidence contained in an investigation file submitted by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland in June 2021.
“The prosecutions are in relation to alleged health and safety failings that were discovered as a result of the investigation by the NI Fire and Rescue Service and the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland following the fire.
“Proceedings will commence in due course.”
However, the cause of the fire was not part of the alleged offences.
Primark recently announced that the historic Bank Buildings store, which has stood at the junction of Royal Avenue and Castle Street since 1787, will reopen to the public on Tuesday, November 1, 2022.
As a temporary measure, Primark reopened its doors to shoppers in December 2018 at Commonwealth House in Castle Street.
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know.