INVESTIGATIONS are ongoing into a gorse fire that gardaí believe was started deliberately near Fort Camden in Crosshaven on Monday evening.

Crews from Crosshaven, Carrigaline and Kinsale Fire Stations attended the incident and were supported by Cork City Fire Brigade with the fire coming within two feet of destroying one home in the area.

Paul Brierly, retained station officer with Crosshaven Fire Service, said his crew were in the fight of their lives as they were ‘dancing with the devil’ on arrival to the gorse fire in which he described as a ‘nightmarish scenario’.

He said the regional control centre in Limerick received 31 calls in the space of eight minutes about the fire and their pagers went off at approximately 5pm.

‘When we arrived at the scene the wind was flaming the flames and was heading towards houses there. It was ferocious and we were in the fight of our lives and dancing with the devil.’

‘The crackling was frightening and the threat to property was really high. It took about three hours to extinguish the fire with the help of our other fire-fighting colleagues, he told The Neil Prendeville Show on Cork’s Red FM.

A spokesperson for Cork County Fire Service said a four-wheel drive vehicle and water tanker were also deployed to assist firefighting operations.

‘Strong easterly winds carried large volumes of smoke across the harbour towards Carrigaline, making it difficult at times to accurately assess the fire’s location and extent from land.’

The Irish Coast Guard also provided valuable assistance from the water, helping firefighters gain a clearer view of the affected area and co-ordinate operations more
effectively.

‘The Port of Cork’s firefighting tug also attends and supported firefighting efforts using its water cannons.’

The fire was eventually extinguished at around 10pm but crews remained on site for several hours carrying out damping down operations to eliminate any risk of
reignition.

Local Fine Gael Councillor Jack White thanked all the emergency services for their incredible response to the fire including Crosshaven Coast Guard.

‘Huge credit must also go out to the Master and crew of the Doyle Shipping Group’s Tug Alex, who responded so quickly to Monday evening’s fire. Stationed at Whitegate, they were on the scene in under 10 minutes despite challenging tidal conditions. Their assistance with the fire hose from the water played an important part.’

A Garda spokesperson said they are investigating an incident of criminal damage by fire at Crosshaven and enquiries are ongoing.