FIRE FIGHT ON VINEGAR HILL
THERE were dramatic scenes in Enniscorthy on Wednesday as plumes of smoke could be seen rising over the historic Vinegar Hill. Fire crews from Enniscorthy and Bunclody faced a difficult battle with a huge gorse fire that had enveloped an overgrown area below the rocks shortly after 5 p.m. and was in danger of spreading to nearby houses and Coláiste Bríde following a change in wind direction.
It took over two hours to bring the blaze under control and no cause has yet been established. However, the authorities have refused to rule out that the blaze could’ve been started maliciously. Firefighters said it was an extremely close call and could have spread.
PLUMES of smoke could rising from Vinegar Hill were visible all over Enniscorthy on Wednesday evening as members of Enniscorthy and Bunclody Fire Service battled to prevent a major blaze spreading from the historic site to nearby houses and Coláiste Bríde Secondary school.
The call went out just before 5.30 p.m. after residents spotted smoke rising from an overgrown area below the rocks on the way up the hill. While one of the Enniscorthy crews was busy responding to a call in Wexford, the second crew mobilised immediately and set about bringing the blaze under control. Fears arose, however, when a change in wind direction started to spread the fire in the direction of houses and the secondary school and the Enniscorthy crew immediately requested back-up from Bunclody Fire Station. ‘We had to call for assistance when it started spreading down the hill towards the houses and school,’ a spokesman said. ‘ The Bunclody crew arrived just in time and we managed to contain it and bring it under control.’
The crews battled the blaze for over two hours and when it was under control, they had to set about dampening the scene to prevent it re-kindling. With the fire breaking out in a somewhat difficult area to get to, this was not an easy task and members of the fire service continued to monitor the area the following morning.
While no definitive cause has been established as to how the fire broke out, the assertion that it was started deliberately has not been dismissed by the fire service and gardaí also attended the scene on Wednesday. While the situation could have been far worse, had the fire spread to nearby homes, acres of this beautiful green area have now been left black and charred and will take a long time to return to their former glory.