West Cork firefighters save crucial radar installation while tackling 20 wildfires at weekend

This fire was the largest of 20 gorse or vegetation fires, primarily in the Mizen and Beara Peninsulas, to which all six West Cork fire brigades – Bantry, Castletownbere, Schull, Skibbereen, Dunmanway and Clonakilty - were called over the weekend.

Schull Fire Brigade, assisted by Dunmanway Fire Brigade, was called to the Irish Aviation Authority’s Mount Gabriel radar installation – the landmark ‘golf balls’ - at 8.48pm on Sunday by gardaí in Schull when the flames came very close to the radar compound, which provides vital radar data for flights operating in Irish airspace.

The blaze came close enough to activate the buildings' fire alarms, but firefighters managed to prevent the blaze from reaching or damaging the compound. The fire was reported to be under control this afternoon, with wisps of smoke still visible in some areas, and hundreds of acres left scorched.

A spokesman for the Cork County Fire Service said crews worked hard in very challenging conditions for many hours tackling this, and other fires, some of which came very close to private houses.

“But crews were able to protect these houses. Fire crews had to contend with very heavy vegetation cover together with strong winds, which made it very difficult to fight the fires,” he said.

The deployment of so many firefighters to so many blazes left some parts of the region without adequate emergency cover, Schull-based Fine Gael councillor Caroline Cronin said.

She paid tribute to the firefighters involved and said there is relief locally that nobody was injured, but she said the incidents highlight the lack of firefighters in general on the Mizen Peninsula.

“This is as big a fire that I have seen on Mount Gabriel and huge credit must go to the local team of Cork County Council fire crews,” she said. “Their dedication certainly prevented this getting completely out of control and threatening human life."

However, she said the two fire engines based in Schull which serve a huge geographical region are operating on a skeleton crew of just seven.

“The part-time fire service has seen resignations and retirements and it is proving very difficult to attract new crews as the pay is unattractive to new entrants even though the commitment is so huge,” she said.

“Central government ought to put fair budgets in place to provide absolutely necessary emergency services.” 

Cork County Council underlined that point and said uncontrolled fires pose a danger to wildlife, property, infrastructure, the environment and potentially, human life.

“They can be a significant and prolonged draw on fire service resources and may compromise our ability to respond to other incidents such as road traffic collisions or domestic fires,” a spokesman said.

The burning of vegetation is controlled by the Wildlife Acts. It is an offence under Section 40 of the Wildlife Act, 1976 (amended by Section 46 of the Wildlife Act, 2000) to burn, from March 1 to 31 August in any year, any vegetation growing on any land not then cultivated.

Individuals who are found to burn vegetation within that prohibited period are liable to prosecution by An Garda Síochána or by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.