Coillte fighting major forest fire at Cloosh Valley in Galway

A major fire at Cloosh Valley in Galway escalated out of control this afternoon despite the best efforts of Coillte and local ground crews to extinguish the fire.

Thousands of acres of forest, moorland and wildlife are now at major risk of destruction.

Ireland’s largest wind farm, Galway Wind Park, is also located within this forest, and is at close proximity to the fire.

A helicopter has been on site at Cloosh Valley over the past two days working to extinguish the fire, but with the situation escalating this afternoon, the local fire brigade has now been called in to help protect the wind farm and Coillte have also requested support from the Air-Corps, who provided invaluable air support at other fire incidents, including Sligo, over the weekend.

Recent forest fires around the country have resulted in hundreds of hectares of productive commercial forestry being destroyed and this has the potential to run into thousands of hectares if fires, such as the one in Cloosh Valley, continue.

Commenting Gerard Murphy, Managing Director of Coillte Forest, said, “The recent outbreak of fires, particularly across the west and north of the country, has been responsible for the worst damage to Coillte’s estate since 2011.

“In addition to the damage caused to commercial forestry, these forest fires pose a significant risk to farmland, native woodland and areas designated for nature conservation.”

With weather forecasters predicting the current dry conditions to continue for the rest of the week, Coillte are appealing to the public to be extra vigilant towards the dangers of wildfire and be mindful that responsible behaviour, including acting safely and responsibly in rural environments, can significantly reduce the chance of wildfire starting.