11th night: Fire crews protect homes from bonfires

The Fire and Rescue Service dealt with 29 bonfire-related calls overnight, 12 of which needed intervention by crews.

In Belfast, more than 30 firefighters helped to protect homes close to a large bonfire near Chobham Street.

In advance of the bonfire being lit at midnight, windows and doors of 54 homes were boarded up to protect the glass.

When it was set alight, fire crews were already waiting in nearby streets. In total, six fire appliances and 35 firefighters were required at the site.

Nearby homes had to be boarded up days before the bonfire was lit

'Punishing conditions'

Assistant chief fire officer Alan Walmsley said: "It was a very complex operation. It was an extremely large bonfire which had the potential to spread to a number of properties.

"The firefighters were working in extremely punishing conditions.

Assistant chief fire officer Alan Walmsley said the Chobham Street bonfire was a complex operation for fire crews

Firefighters sprayed water on nearby homes to protect them from heat damage

"We believe we have protected all of the houses from any fire damage. There may be some minor water damage to some of the properties," he added.

It cost the Department for Regional Development a total of £10,000 to board up houses in the area.

At one stage the police had to close off part of the Upper Newtownards Road to allow fire crews access to hydrants near the bonfire.

Hundreds of people surrounded the bonfire or watched from nearby streets.

Sinn Féin, SDLP and Alliance Party election posters were placed on the bonfire before it was set alight, as well as a number of Irish tricolour flags.

'Decrease'

As the bonfire started to go out at about 02:00 BST, householders on Chobham Street began taking the wooden boards off the glass windows of their homes.

In a statement, the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) said it received a total of 88 fire calls between 18:00 BST on Saturday until 01:00 BST on Sunday, which was a decrease on last year's figures.

Hundreds of people gathered to watch the bonfire in east Belfast

Twenty-nine of the incidents were bonfire related and crews had to intervene in 12 of these, to ensure safety.

"It is likely that reduced call numbers were due to the fact that the 11th of July this year fell on Saturday and a number of bonfires may have been held over to be ignited on the evening of Sunday 12th July," the NIFRS statement said.

"Thankfully there were no reports of any crews being attacked during the evening."