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Firefighters still at the scene of large cross-border gorse fire

BBC A person standing with their back to the camera wearing a red top, yellow hi-vis with the British Red Cross badge on the back and a grey cap. They have long red hair which is plaited. Next to them is a parked red and yellow fire engine. BBC
The fire service advised those who live nearby to keep windows and doors closed due to the smoke

Firefighters are continuing to tackle a large gorse fire near Clogher, County Tyrone.

The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) said it received a report of a fire near the Ashfield Road at about 12:51 BST on Wednesday.

Sixty firefighters and 10 pumping appliances remained at the scene on Thursday morning.

The blaze has since spread across the border into County Monaghan.

Specialist wildfire officers and the forestry service are also in attendance.

A significant fire service presence is expected to be in place for the rest of the day.

The NIFRS has advised those who live nearby to keep windows and doors closed due to the smoke.

Firefighters from County Monaghan were called to Bragan Mountain to survey the extent of the blaze across the border at Fardross in County Tyrone

Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) assembly member Deborah Erskine said the smoke coming from the fire "can be seen for miles".

"It is devastating to see the fire raging, which will undoubtedly cause extensive damage to the natural habitat in the area," she added.

"Whilst it is unknown at present how this fire was started, it is concerning for the local community and sad to see such loss."

A red fire car with yellow stripes on the side is parked on the side of a gravel path on a grass verge. In the background the path continues, around an area of woodland with numerous trees. It is a sunny day.
A significant fire service presence is expected to be at the scene of the fire for the rest of Thursday

The blaze comes amid a spell of dry and sunny weather, and weeks after a number of wildfires devastated some beauty spots in Northern Ireland.

At the beginning of April, the NIFRS said it attended 1,112 incidents over a week-long period, 296 of which were wildfires.

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