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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Warning follows 900 NI wildfires | Warning follows 900 NI wildfires |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Firefighters in Northern Ireland have tackled nearly 900 wildland fires in the past six weeks. | Firefighters in Northern Ireland have tackled nearly 900 wildland fires in the past six weeks. |
| The figure was revealed as it emerged overnight fires in County Armagh's Slieve Gullion Forest Park are being treated as arson. | |
| The Fire and Rescue Service said its crews had attended 880 wildland fires from 1 April - 13 May. | |
| Meanwhile, five fire crews are battling a gorse fire in the village of Park, near Dungiven in County Londonderry. | |
| The fire, which broke out on Tuesday night, is on a front nearly a mile and a half long. | |
| Fire service station commander Mark Darryl said: "At first light this morning we despatched five fire crews from various parts of the north west to attack this fire which is now on about a mile to a mile and a half front. | |
| "What we're trying to do is firstly to contain the fire from spreading to a plantation of newly developed trees and also to protect any other property in the area." | |
| Alarm | |
| In Slieve Gullion, the alarm was raised on Tuesday after four separate fires started in young trees in the park - each destroying about an acre of land. | |
| John Allen of the Fire and Rescue Service said the forest could have been destroyed in the blaze. | John Allen of the Fire and Rescue Service said the forest could have been destroyed in the blaze. |
| "We were very fortunate in that we received the call early and we had appliances at hand," he said. | "We were very fortunate in that we received the call early and we had appliances at hand," he said. |
| "I would be certain in my own mind that these fires were started deliberately." | "I would be certain in my own mind that these fires were started deliberately." |
| The Forestry Service raised the alarm at about 2130 BST on Tuesday. | The Forestry Service raised the alarm at about 2130 BST on Tuesday. |
| The fire service urged people to be extra careful while out enjoying the countryside in the warm dry weather and to be vigilant for anyone starting fires deliberately. | |