Gardaí believe some fires at Killarney National Park set deliberately
In some areas, hill farmers burn off vegetation annually, but fires within the national park itself are suspected of being started deliberately as acts of vandalism.
Gardaí are investigating the cause of a number of land and forest fires which took place in the national park and surrounding areas last Wednesday.
The fires, which raged for several hours before being extinguished by the Kerry Fire and Rescue Service, caused significant damage to the national park, a major tourist attraction.
Fires in the Mangerton area came within 200m of up to six houses and firemen said that if the fire crossed the road leading to the houses, they could have been burned down.
All such burning is illegal as gorse and mountain fires are banned, under the Wildlife Act, between March and August.
The Department of Arts and Heritage, which is responsible for national parks, is assessing the cost of the damage, estimated to run into hundreds of thousands of euro.
For the first time, an Air Corps helicopter was called in to douse a fire near Ladies’ View — a well-known tourist landmark on the Ring of Kerry — using water from a nearby lake.
A meeting of the Kerry Wildfire Interagency Group — involving gardaí, the Department of Agriculture, the National Parks and Wildlife Service, and Kerry Fire Service — has since been held to formulate an interagency response to the investigation of these incidents.
Superintendent Flor Murphy, Killarney, appealed to the public for any information, saying the fires posed “very serious risks to lives and property” and potential long-term damage to the community and local economy.
He urged people near wooded areas to comply with the legislation and undertake burning in a controlled manner. They should also make themselves aware of necessary precautions relating to controlled burning.
Meanwhile, Rory Jackson, an environmentalist from Skibbereen, Co Cork, has set up a Facebook page, Stop Gorse Fires. He said he had been following the issue for many years and that the number of fires was increasing annually.
Any information relating to the investigation can be passed onto Killarney Garda Station, at 064 6671160, the Garda confidential line on 1800 666 111, or other relevant groups including wildlife rangers or the fire service
