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03/05/2011
Boys, 10 and 15, Questioned About Weekend Blazes
Two boys, aged 10 and 15, have been questioned by police about gorse fires in County Tyrone.
The blazes were started in the Aghnagar Road area of Sixmilecross, near Omagh over the weekend.
A PSNI statement said it was "extremely distressing" that those allegedly involved were so young.
Emergency crews battled grassland fires across Northern Ireland over the weekend.
Officers from the NI Fire & Rescue Service were called out to 194 incidents in the 24 hours since Sunday afternoon.
Hundreds of acres of land and homes were destroyed and livestock has been threatened.
Large areas of the Mourne Mountains in Co Down were also affected by fires, which are thought to have been started deliberately.
Chief Fire Officer Peter Craig said it had been a "phenomenally busy" period.
PSNI spokesman Gary White stated that the thought that many of these fires may have been caused deliberately is very hard to comprehend.
He commented: "Not only are they putting livestock in danger, and destroying the habitat of wildlife but as seen in the necessary evacuations, homes and therefore the lives of residents are being threatened.
"It might seem fun and a bit of bravado to set a piece of gorse on fire, but with the current weather conditions a small fire can quickly get out of control; change direction and spread rapidly."
The NIFRS said the holiday weekend had been the busiest in its history. At one stage, the service was getting a call every 45 seconds.
(JG/GK)
The blazes were started in the Aghnagar Road area of Sixmilecross, near Omagh over the weekend.
A PSNI statement said it was "extremely distressing" that those allegedly involved were so young.
Emergency crews battled grassland fires across Northern Ireland over the weekend.
Officers from the NI Fire & Rescue Service were called out to 194 incidents in the 24 hours since Sunday afternoon.
Hundreds of acres of land and homes were destroyed and livestock has been threatened.
Large areas of the Mourne Mountains in Co Down were also affected by fires, which are thought to have been started deliberately.
Chief Fire Officer Peter Craig said it had been a "phenomenally busy" period.
PSNI spokesman Gary White stated that the thought that many of these fires may have been caused deliberately is very hard to comprehend.
He commented: "Not only are they putting livestock in danger, and destroying the habitat of wildlife but as seen in the necessary evacuations, homes and therefore the lives of residents are being threatened.
"It might seem fun and a bit of bravado to set a piece of gorse on fire, but with the current weather conditions a small fire can quickly get out of control; change direction and spread rapidly."
The NIFRS said the holiday weekend had been the busiest in its history. At one stage, the service was getting a call every 45 seconds.
(JG/GK)
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