The number of gorse fires in Kerry during the first three months of this year, increased by 45% when compared to the same period last year.
Figures show the Kerry Fire Service was mobilised 321 times in the first quarter of this year; that compares to 315 mobilisations during the same period last year.
The figures were presented to members of the Tralee Municipal District at their recent meeting.
Up until the end of March, the Kerry Fire Service attended 87 gorse fires; that’s a 45% increase when compared to the same time last year, when the service attended 60 gorse fires.
The number of chimney fires around the county also rose this year; from January to March the fire service attended 40 such incidents, a rise of 29% when compared to the 31 chimney fires during the first quarter of 2020.
Meanwhile, the number of road traffic collisions attended by the Kerry Fire Service is down by 53% so far this year.
From January to March this year the service attended 15 road accidents, compared to 32 during the same three months in 2020.
The Kerry Fire Service also attended five call outs for flooding or water pumping between January and the end of March this year.
