Dublin Fire Brigade tackling gorse fire in Howth

Three units of Dublin Fire Brigade were called to Howth on Sunday afternoon after a gorse wildfire broke out in the north Dublin suburb.

The fire brigade tweeted on Sunday shortly before 4pm that smoke was “widely visible” around the hill of Howth but that “firefighters are working to deal with the incident”.

One video posted by on Twitter showed a fire blazing on Howth hill with large plumes of dark smoke clouding the sky above. Another video filmed from Dollymount strand showed the dark smoke spreading for miles across Sutton and into Baldoyle and beyond.

A status orange "high" national forest fire warning is currently in place until midday on Monday due to the dry weather and high temperatures across the country. The alert was issued by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine last week, which warned of a peak in fires on Friday, July 2nd.

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Dublin Fire Brigade urged members of the public on Saturday to avoid all open camp fires and barbecues during this period of warm weather.

High fire risks tend to exist in all areas where hazardous fuels such as dead grasses and shrubs such as heather and gorse can be found, according to State forestry company Coillte.

“The need for increased vigilance at this time cannot be overstated,” wrote Coillte in a statement. “Forest owners, farmers, rural dwellers and other countryside users are asked to be extremely vigilant regarding fire activity, to report any suspicious or illegal activity to the gardaí and to report all fires immediately to the Fire and Emergency Services via 112/999.”

The forestry body has also reminded landowners that it is illegal to burn vegetation on uncultivated land between March 1st and August 31st under the Wildlife Act.

Dublin City Council has issued warnings about fire during the summer months and says a "moderate fire risk condition" will remain in place until the end of September in all areas where "dead grasses, gorse and heather are present in proximity to forests and other assets".

Firefighters in Swords also had to attend to a grass fire in the area on Sunday in an area inaccessible to fire engines. Dublin Fire Brigade tweeted that its crew had extinguished the vegetation fire using gorse beaters.