It has emerged that the three victims of this morning's house fire in Co. Louth were eight, 16 and 21 years of age and all from the same family.

Detectives were tonight continuing to question a senior fire officer over his handling of a blaze which claimed the lives of two of his men.

An experienced firefighter killed on duty with his young colleague warned superiors weeks before they died of dangerous practices in the local fire service.

Several cattle drowned and an elderly woman had to be airlifted to hospital today during freak floods that devastated homes and businesses.

Gorse fires on Black Mountain in west Belfast and outside Carrickfergus, Co Antrim, were today both believed to have been started deliberately.

Fires in a forest park were the work of arsonists, police said today.

Fire chiefs across the 32 counties are planning to introduce regular fitness tests for their officers, a conference of fire officers from Britain and Ireland was told today.

A woman in her 30s died today in a fire in Co Down.

An investigation is underway into the cause of the fire that swept through a chemical laboratory in the Ispat Steel Plant, killing one man and injuring three others.