'Major' wildfire chars slopes of Northern Ireland's tallest mountain
A beautiful weekend in Northern Ireland would typically bring people out to the Mourne Mountains, home to the country's oldest national park. Instead, residents have been warned to stay away as dozens of firefighters have been battling a raging fire.
The blaze started on Friday on Slieve Donard, Northern Ireland's highest mountain. By Saturday, the situation escalated, forcing the Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service (NIRFS) to declare the fire a "major incident."
As of Sunday, local time, the fire had burned thousands of acres in Killarney National Park before being declared under control late in the day.
As the sun starts to set on a long, hard day for our Firefighters and our partners we want to thank all of them for their hard work in the major incident in the Mournes. The incident is ongoing and will continue into tomorrow.
📷@ConorK_Photohttps://t.co/FuUQNot1Ji pic.twitter.com/qfUotGQrxE— Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service (@NIFRSOFFICIAL) April 24, 2021
Over the weekend, temperatures across Northern Ireland climbed to about 5-10 degrees Fahrenheit (3-6 degrees Celsius) above normal with periods of gusty winds -- conditions that allowed the fire to spread. Dry vegetation is abundant across the region with precipitation falling below normal so far this month.
The normal high temperature in Belfast during the end of April is around 54 F (12 C).
"[This] is a time of the year when there is a lot of dry grass about," said Environment minister Edwin Poots, "and people need to be ultra cautious that they don't accidentally start a fire like this."
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According to the BBC, more than 100 firefighters from stations across the country were battling the blaze. A coastguard helicopter was also deployed to transport firefighters to remote areas on the mountain.
It was reported that conventional firefighting equipment was unable to reach parts of the fire due to the challenging terrain, the BBC stated.
Aidan Jennings, the assistant chief fire and rescue officer, said that the view from the helicopter also allowed them to plan which resources to deploy on Sunday, the Guardian reported.
Health Minister Robin Swann visited the Mournes today to thank Firefighters for their hard work.
"The bravery, commitment & determination of these Firefighters has very much shone through as they worked tirelessly in extreme circumstances to bring this fire under control." pic.twitter.com/p7gMTDkBVF— Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service (@NIFRSOFFICIAL) April 25, 2021
"We are working closely with many partner agencies at the scene and this support has been invaluable. This is truly a multi-agency effort to bring this fire under control," Jennings added.
In addition to the slopes of Slieve Donard, the fire also affected the Glen River Valley and Thomas Mountain, popular destinations for visitors.
AccuWeather meteorologists expect isolated showers across the area through the end of the week, along with cooler temperatures.
While this will help to reduce the threat for wildfires, a gusty wind can aid in spreading any fires to do get out of control.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
