Firefighters battle Castlewellan forest fire

Firefighters have been battling a large forest fire in Co Down. Picture: NIFRSSouth/PA Wire

Firefighters have been battling a large forest fire in Co Down.

The blaze in Castlewellan has been burned since Friday morning.

The fire has swept over a large area of gorse and forest.

On Saturday afternoon, around 50 firefighters continued to tackle the flames.

Seven pumping units were in attendance, along with a command unit and supervisory officers.

A specialist wildfire response team and specialist rescue team were also involved.

NIFRS and Forestry Service face punishing conditions in their battle to control a fire close to Castlewellan Forest Park pic.twitter.com/wMDrMuVFuW

— Richie Campbell (@Richie4504) May 16, 2020

South Down MP Chris Hazzard praised the efforts.

He tweeted: “Huge credit to @NIFRSOFFICIAL for their ongoing efforts in battling wild fire outside Castlewellan”