The wall of dense rhododendron on the spine of Torc Mountain in the Killarney National Park acted as a firebreak in the early hours of Saturday morning and prevented a major fire reaching the oak, beech and pine woodlands, it has emerged.

A feud which erupted after a First Holy Communion and continues to involve two sectors of the Kerry Traveller community remains highly volatile, the county’s main policing body was told yesterday.

The prospect of a nighttime ban on hunting and shooting in the autumn/winter period is coming under fire in the southwest, where the issue of criminals lurking with intent, rather than genuinely looking for rabbits or foxes, is of concern.

There has been a sharp rise in incidents of stalking in Kerry.