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Emergency services have confirmed that they have contained gorse fires in County Waterford and Tipperary.
The intervention comes as the dry weather and warm spells persist in many parts of the country – with fire crews tackling separate blazes in mountains either side of the River Suir.
The majority of a large fire that started over a week ago on Slievenamon in Co Tipperary was brought mainly under control at the end of last week, however local emergency services say that the blaze has persisted in some spots.
Fire crews have struggled to contain separate blazes in mountains either side of the River Suir.
Tipperary Independent TD Mattie McGrath sent footage from the blaze in the Tipperary mountains, describing it as “a real battle.”
“I don’t think we will contain the blaze fully for a number of days unless we get heavy rain,” the Tipperary South TD said.
Deputy McGrath commended the work of fire fighters who successfully contained the blaze, attaching an image which showed the scale of the wildfire blazing at 11pm on Saturday evening.
Firefighters from Clonmel, Cahir and Carrick-on-Suir stations today temain on the ground at Slievenamon. Two helicopters provided by the Air Corps and Coillte subcontractors are also assisting with dousing the flames from above.
Tipperary County Council said that the priority of the emergency response is to contain and extinguish the fire, protect public safety and assess any potential risk to surrounding lands and property.
It added that aerial support had been requested to assist in establishing the full extent of the fire and to assess any potential impact on adjoining forestry lands.
“As the incident is ongoing, it would be premature to comment on the cause of the fire, the extent of any damage, or the full scale of the response operation,” it said, adding that such matters would be assessed.
“Members of the public may notice smoke visible some distance from the affected area. Anyone in the vicinity is advised to avoid the immediate area where possible and to follow any directions issued by emergency services personnel,” the Council said.
It comes as visitors, landowners, and members of the public were urged to exercise “extreme caution” and not to light fires or barbecues near forests, grasslands or upland areas, and to report any signs of fire immediately to the emergency services.
Meanwhile, Waterford City and County Council said that a fire on the Comeragh Mountains, which broke out at around 3pm on Sunday, had been brought under control. It said that the blaze was caused by a gorse fire, again urging people to avoid “any activity that could result in a fire being started” such as campfires and barbecues.
“No buildings are currently at risk and no injuries have been reported,” Waterford City and County Council said.
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