Firefighters tackle 300 gorse fires in three weeks

Gorse fire

Firefighters battled a fire at Barony Road, Mountfield, Omagh earlier this month

The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) has dealt with 300 grassland or gorse fires in the last three weeks, most of which, it said, have been started deliberately.

The figures come as firefighters continue to battle a gorse fire in Altrichard Road in Ballycastle, County Antrim.

Crews were called to the scene at about 13:00 BST on Tuesday.

Another gorse fire on Islandboy Road has been put out.

Fifteen fire appliances and 70 firefighters were deployed to both incidents.

Nine fire appliances and about 50 firefighters continue to deal with the fire at Altarichard Road in “high winds and difficult terrain”.

The cause of both fires is under investigation.

A spokesman for the NIFRS said that “these kinds of fires unnecessarily draw our resources away from where they are needed most - protecting our community".

He asked the public not to add on “additional pressure” to the service.

On Tuesday the Department of Agriculture and the NIFRS asked farmers and the public for their help during the current dry weather spell.

“The hot and dry weather has left the countryside vulnerable to fires caused by burning of vegetation or waste and littering and dumping of waste materials could put our emergency services under more pressure,” a statement said.

Almost always started ‘deliberately’ or ‘recklessly’

Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots also urged the public not to “start a fire in the countryside”.

“Wildfires are rarely natural. They are almost always started either deliberately, or by reckless burning or disposal of flammable vegetation or waste material,” he said.

The NIFRS has put together the following advice if you see a fire in the countryside:

  • Report it immediately to the NIFRS

  • Do not attempt to tackle fires that cannot be put out with a bucket of water

  • Leave the area as soon as possible

  • If you see someone setting fires, report it to the PSNI

  • If you do know people who are fire setting, let the PSNI know to assist with prosecutions

If you are in the countryside:

  • Extinguish cigarettes and other flammable materials properly

  • Never throw cigarette ends out of car windows

  • Avoid using open fires in the countryside