Series of blazes stretch Fire Service resources to limits

Fire crews in south Armagh were stretched to their limits over the weekend in a series of fires ranging from gorse blazes to farm machinery.

Early on Friday morning, fire crews were called to tackle gorse fires on Camlough Mountain and Slieve Gullion.

Appliances from Crossmaglen, Newtownhamilton, Keady, Warrenpoint and even as far away as Banbridge and Belfast were called on to help extinguish the blazes.  The operation continued into the following day as, aided by the strong sunshine and warm temperatures, the fires continued to smoulder and reignite.  As the respective fire crews worked in rotation, it was late on Saturday evening before the area was declared safe.

Hayshed

Also on Friday, a farm outside Silverbridge was completely destroyed after a shed full of bales of hay caught fire.

The farmer has spoke of his devastation after the fire completely gutted one shed and severely damaged an adjoining shed and lean-to.  Farm machinery, including a mower and harvester were burnt out, along with a vintage tractor he had been restoring.  Hundreds of bales of hay and straw were lost in the blaze while several tonne of coal that was being stored in the adjoining shed is also ruined.

Francie McArdle, whose farm is on O’Callaghan’s Road, says he has lost everything.  Initially he had tried to put the fire out himself, not realising how quickly it would spread.

Describing the moment he was alerted to the fire, Mr McArdle said, “I noticed a bit of smoke coming from the bales so I went over and tried to get in at them.  When I pulled the bale back, it just spread like wildfire.  The shed was in flames in seconds.  I wouldn’t have believed it only I saw it myself.  In a couple of seconds the whole lot was up.  Once the air got at it, that was it.”

With no insurance, Mr McArdle is faced with significant the cost of rebuilding his livelihood.  “I’ll just have to do it a bit at a time,” he said.

It’s believed the strong sunshine was a significant factor in this instance also, causing the tightly-packed bales to heat up and smoulder.  Fire crews were called to the scene shortly after 11.00am, by which time the shed was well alight.  The operation to extinguish the fire was severely hampered by the fact that a number of gas cylinders were being stored in the shed.  The high temperatures increased the risk of the tanks exploding and so fire personnel were tasked with keeping the temperature of the cylinders down to prevent combustion.

Forced to keep a safe distance, the blazing bales caused extensive damage and continued to smoulder for hours.  Fire crews remained at the scene until lunchtime on Saturday, more than 24 hours after the fire was first reported.

Machinery

The pressure on the fire service continued unabated when farm machinery at Tullyvallen, near Cullyhanna, caught fire late on Friday night.   The Crossmaglen fire crew was called to attend to this incident where a tractor and baler were destroyed.  The cause of this fire is unclear.

With the prolonged spell of fine weather, inevitably comes the risk of fire and the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service is urging the public to be alert to the dangers of fire and particularly the risk of gorse fires that can rapidly spread.