A large fire in Galway, in the west of Ireland, had destroyed 5,000 acres of bogland and almost 3,000 acres of forest by May 10. The Irish Air Corps, local fire services and staff from the national forestry agency, Coillte, were fighting the blaze.
“The forest fire at Cloosh is threatening the welfare of many homes and local communities, as well as causing devastation to vast areas of wildlife habitat,” Coillte said.
The Cloosh fire was the largest of some 20-30 fires burning nationally, Coillte said, following a spell of dry, warm and windy weather. Deliberate fire setting was a “significant factor” in the size of the problem nationwide, it said.
