This article is from page 16 of the 2006-07-18 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 16 JPG
FIREFIGHTERS battled for hours last night with flames that engulfed hundreds of acres of mountain and could be seen more than 20 miles away.
The blaze started in an area close to the Hand in Miltown Malbay, on a hill known locally as Mary Walsh’s Mountain.
It began some time in the afternoon and by 5pm, four units of the brigade as well as back up four wheel drive vehicles were on the scene to get to grips with the inferno.
It was three hours before the massive blaze was brought under control and crews worked into the night in a damping down operation.
A spokesman for the fire control centre said that the fierce blaze was visible as far away as the motorway at Dromoland and residents of Kilshanny could clearly see the flames.
Firefighters said that the very dry weather and heat provided ideal conditions for the mountain scrub to ignite.
One eyewitness reported seeing a massive plume of smoke emerging from the hills to the south east of Miltown Malbay.
“We first noticed it around 4 o’clock,” said the local business person.
“There was so much smoke that it just looked like a giant cloud and we didn’t even realise that it was a fire until a neighbour, who lives out by the Hand, called up to see it.
“It didn’t get too close to us thankfully as a wind blew up and drove the flames in a westerly direction.”
Meanwhile, as temperatures soared into the high twenties in Clare yesterday, householders with their own wells were getting hot under the collar.
Suppliers of household water pumps were reporting record number of calls from homeowners who thought their pumps were malfunctioning.
“They think that the pump has broken down, but in fact, the well has run dry.
“Springs that never dried up before have dried up this week”, a spokeswoman for an east Clare pump contractor told The Clare People .
Temperatures yesterday were the hottest recorded so far this year and the dry spell is set to continue until Wednesday, when there may be thunder storms and rain.
The weekend promises to be cooler, with showers.