Fires

The Partnership has paid tribute to the dedication of the PSNI and hard work of the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service in battling to protect the hills from arsonists.  And it has appealed to anyone who sees and fire or anyone starting one to report it to the police immediately.

Conservationists in west Belfast have warned that someone will be killed in the Belfast Hills after arsonists torched scores of malicious fires. Officials from the Belfast Hills Partnership and the National Trust have been surveying the devastation that has cut a swathe through a vast area of upland heath.

The incendiaries have caused widespread damage to land above the Whiterock Road across to an area known locally as Windy Gap. Carnmoney Hill and Cave Hill have also been targeted.

A number of youths have been charged with arson.

Red grouse, stonechats, skylark, snipe and other upland breeding birds live in the Black Mountain area, while peregrine falcons and ravens feed on the mountain environment.

The National Trust’s warden for Divis and Black Mountain, Dermot McCann said it was only a matter of time before serious injury or loss of life was caused by the arsonists.

“Someone is going to be killed. There is going to be loss of life if this goes on,” he said.

“It only takes the wind to change and either the people starting these fires or an innocent walker will be caught up in it or will be disorientated because of the smoke.

Dr Jim Bradley of the Belfast Hills Partnership, which has been studying the long term effects of the malicious fires with Queen’s University’s Quercus group, said with the right conditions, the fires could spread and change direction at a frightening pace.

Dr Bradley said the implications were also “extremely serious” for soil erosion.

“Water draining off the hills could lead to flooding in the long term.”

He said: “It is obvious these are deliberate fires. Early spring fires like these are causing major damage and loss of wildlife and landscape. I would appeal to those starting them to stop now before more damage or serious injury is caused.

“We commend the work of the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service and PSNI and it is important that people call the fire brigade when they see these fires. Don’t assume that someone else will be doing it. We’d like to appeal to all those within the communities in west Belfast to help education people about the devastating consequences of these upland heath fires. These parts of the hills are cherished and widely used by the local community.”