Majority of 214 blazes started on purpose, say firefighters

Most of the 214 wildfires in Northern Ireland in recent days were started deliberately, firefighters have said.

Between Thursday and Tuesday, Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) crews tackled blazes in areas including the Mourne Mountains in County Down, Belfast, Newry and Ballygawley.

A large gorse fire in County Tyrone is still being dealt with by firefighters.

About 40 personnel are at the scene of the fire near the Millix Road, north of Ballygawley.

Fires in the Mourne Mountains, County Down, have been brought under control, but walkers are being advised to avoid the area until further notice.

Speaking to BBC News NI’s Good Morning Ulster Programme, NIFRS commander David Harbinson said he was still concerned by the situation.

He said the vegetation was very dry and fires were therefore spreading rapidly.

A gorse fire reported on Divis and Black Mountain in Belfast on Tuesday evening has also been extinguished.

It was among those believed to have been started deliberately.

Twenty-six firefighters tackled the blaze.

At the scene: Ballygawley fire rages near houses

By Niall McCracken, BBC News NI Mid Ulster reporter

On my way to the scene, as I drove near the Ballygawley roundabout I could see the first signs of gorse fire smoke emerging from behind the hills.

Further up the valley, I was passed by a number of fire engines on their way to tackle the blaze.

When I arrived at the Millix Road, just a few miles from the village of Ballygawley, emergency services had cordoned off the area.

There were two locations where smoke seemed to be emerging from the County Tyrone hills, one of the fires was only a couple of hundred metres directly behind someone’s house.

The smell of smoke was thick and traces of ash could be seen in the air.

It is a rural area and challenging terrain for large fire trucks to traverse over small, rural country roads.

Earlier in the week, Sinn Féin MP for South Down Chris Hazzard called for a review of the law relating to burning in Northern Ireland.

The law states that burning of vegetation such as heather, gorse, whin or fern may only be carried out between 1 September and 14 April.

There is currently no offence relating specifically to the setting of gorse fires, other than what the Department of Justice calls “burning whins (gorse, heather, or fern) in close season”.

From 2020 to 2024, there were no prosecutions at courts for the offence “burning whins in close season”, but the setting of gorse fires more generally can be prosecuted as arson.

The Department of Justice does not keep records on the circumstances of arson prosecutions, for example whether someone was prosecuted for arson because they lit a gorse fire.

In the Republic of Ireland, for comparison, the law states growing vegetation cannot be burnt for a longer period of the year – between 1 March and 31 August.

Gardaí (police) and the fire service must be consulted before any burning.

A number of wildfires have ravaged the landscape in the Mourne Mountains including at Slieve Bearnagh, Slieve Binnian and Bloody Bridge.

A major incident was declared at the weekend when a large wildfire broke out near the Mournes, leading to homes being evacuated.

That blaze is being treated as arson.

There have been 147 fires across the mountains since Thursday night.