Forest and bogland destroyed by fire

Huge swathes of forest and bogland lay destroyed today after blazes broke out in Connemara.

Firefighters near the village of Moycullen tackled bog fires which got out of control in a mountainous area late last night.

Meanwhile, massive damage has been caused to hundreds of hectares of forests after a series of gorse and bog fires.

Volunteers and staff from the forestry agency Coillte fought several separate blazes this week which swept through land between Clifden and Oughterard.

Two helicopters also assisted in bringing the flames under control.

Coillte worker Alan Maye said: “It’s a terrible sight to see when you’ve planted ground – I was with men in their 50s and they were practically in tears.

“It took 20 years to grow and it’s just gone in 20 minutes.”

Mr Maye said the cost of fighting the fires was more than €100,000.

“When you think of what it’s costing the State when it goes out of control, landowners have to be vigilant,” he said.