Emergency services attended the scene of a gorse fire in the Clonmany area of Donegal on Thursday night shortly after 8pm.

Speaking on Highland Radio, director of human resources, economic development and emergency services at Donegal County Council Garry Martin said that a substantial response from emergency services was required at the scene of the blaze.

“We had four appliances and over 40 firefighters fighting it from shortly after 8pm last night through to this morning,” he stated.

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Martin said that a number of appliances were still at the scene on Friday morning as the blaze was under control. However, it was not fully put out.

Orange high fire risk warning

Donegal County Council has issued an orange warning for high fire risk as a result of the current weather forecast for mainly dry, warm and breezy weather, especially for areas with hazardous fuels such as dead grasses and shrub fuels such as heather and gorse.

“Fire behaviour, spread rates and difficulty of suppression will be strongly influenced by increasingly dry fuel conditions, low humidity levels associated with easterly winds and moderate to fresh wind speeds,” the council said.

It is also appealing to the public to be vigilant for fires in areas with open public access, active turf cutting and other high-risk activities.

“Visitors to public recreational areas should co-operate with all fire safety requirements and not light open fires or barbecues in high-risk areas,” the council stated.

“Rural users should co-operate with all requests regarding fire safety, obey all relevant bye-laws and be considerate in parking vehicles so as not to impede access by emergency vehicles.”

The orange warning will remain in place from Monday 20 April until Monday 27 April, unless otherwise stated.