People of Newcastle try to keep calm and carry on as inferno rages above them

The NI Fire and Rescue Service, working alongside their search and rescue colleagues, have been trying to extinguish them since the weekend.

Clouds of white smoke continued to envelope the peaks yesterday.

Crews have dealt with 146 wildfires across Northern Ireland since midnight last Thursday, with more than 100 firefighters deployed in the Mournes.

Homes at Sandbank Road were evacuated on Saturday, and Silent Valley Mountain Park has been closed to the public until further notice.

A 25-year-old man arrested on suspicion of arson was released on bail pending further police enquiries.

Speaking at Bloody Bridge, the scene of a major operation, NIFRS area commander David Harbinson appealed to the public to call 999 if they noticed anything suspicious.

“We have four appliances and 34 personnel (at present). We have deployed 19 personnel to the scene of operations,” he said.

“We are currently assessing the situation on how to deal with this incident. We are also forecasting ahead on whether or not the fire is going to escalate.

“We have a one-mile fire front, which is currently working its way down into the valley.

“That is what the firefighters are currently dealing with.

“We’re able to transport the firefighters up to the scene of operation using all-wheel drive vehicles to the furthest point.

“Firefighters then had to make their way to the scene on foot.

“The current concern at the minute will be the spread of fire and our ability to be able to contain that.

“Wildfires are quite dynamic in nature, it is influenced then by the weather.”

An amber wildfire warning remains in place until the end of the week.

“While we have nice, calm conditions here, as you go further up into the elevation there, you will find that the winds start to pick up. That then itself is very challenging for us,” he added.

“Looking to the weather forecast for the week ahead, we anticipate that the weather is going to change potentially coming into the weekend.

“For us, we are then on high alert for more wildfires as we work through this week. We are not sure yet as to the cause of this one.

“My message to the public is to think about what you are doing when you are out in the countryside.

“First and foremost, if you see any fires, phone 999.

“If you see anybody involved in some suspicious activity, inform the police.

“What we would ask is: do not light open fires in the countryside.

“If you are out enjoying the good weather using barbecues, please dispose of them carefully, make sure they are cooled down.

“If you are out enjoying picnics and you have any glass bottles, please take them away with you.”

While crews battled the unpredictable gorse fires in the mountains, residents in Newcastle below tried to carry on as normal.

However, some visitors expressed frustration over the disruption.

Angela Gale (51) said: “We travelled from Larne, and we like to come down and have a drive around. We got so far then we got diverted and got lost.

“We ended up on this really bad side road that was bumpy. You can see coming up from the left all of the fires coming up.

“I thought they would have been out by now, to be honest. I should have looked online.

“Where we parked, next to the car park by the school, you can smell the smoke, it is really strong.”

Local Matthew Gribbon said: “I was reading on the BBC today about the sheer amount of effort and time the fire services are having to do to put it out, which is crazy.

“(The fires) are very common. It happens, like, every other year.

“There were bigger ones there about five years ago, they basically destroyed that whole face of the mountain.”

The geography teacher added: “It never really gets down enough to me, I live on the other side of the town.

“I don’t think we have ever had an evacuation as a result of a forest fire, and ultimately, the Mourne Mountains are massive.

“Sometimes that bit of paranoia feeds into the frenzy, and that makes people anxious.

“I see that Castlewellan was shut, but other than that, that’s all really (for delays).”

Rachel Moorhead (22), also from Newcastle, said she found the situation “really sad and very concerning”.

She said: “It is such a beautiful area. It’s devastating the fact that it is happening — it keeps happening, why does it keep happening?”

First Minister Michelle O’Neill said: “I want to recognise the incredible bravery and determination of firefighters and emergency services working tirelessly in the Mourne Mountains to protect lives and wildlife.

“I have spoken with local community representatives and offered them our full support.

“The Mournes are an area of outstanding natural beauty that are cherished by so many, and we must do everything we can to ensure the area flourishes for future generations.”

Elsewhere, a significant wildfire broke out on Sunday at Garry Wood close to Dervock in Co Antrim.

And others broke out on the north coast yesterday.

Three fire appliances from Portstewart and Coleraine responded to a fire on Gortycavan Road.

Meanwhile, fire crews from Dungiven and Newtownstewart were at the scene of a wildfire on Sawel Mountain in the Sperrins.

Environment Minister Andrew Muir expressed concern lives could be lost, homes destroyed and serious environmental consequences if “rural arson” continues.

He visited the Mournes yesterday to see the extent of the damage.

Watch: Firefighters tackle ongoing Co. Down wildfire

Mr Muir was speaking in the Assembly in response to an urgent question by South Down DUP MLA Diane Forsythe around the response to the fires.

He said he hoped to bring a strategy forward to the Executive in relation to wildfires “very soon”, which will include a different approach to prescribed burning periods in the countryside.

He told MLAs: “We’ve got to change what we’re doing here.

“I know that is going to be difficult for people, but we can’t continue the current way. We are facing a very serious situation here, and if these fires don’t stop I really worry that lives are going to be lost.

“There is a tendency in this place to divert to ‘blame game’ and finger-pointing, and that doesn’t resolve any of this.

“I am working within my department, I am working with the Health Minister — there is a cross-departmental joined-up approach in relation to this.

“And I think it’s really important I praise the work that has been undertaken by the Fire and Rescue Service, police, the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, the Mourne Heritage Trust, by so many people coming together.

“To be honest, if that preparedness and that prompt response hadn’t been in place, I dread to think what would be happening.

“And it’s really important I say to everyone across Northern Ireland: knock it on the head, stop these fires.

“Lets call this what it is — rural arson. If it doesn’t stop, we’re going to have homes burnt down, we’re going to have people killed, and we’re going to have serious environmental consequences beyond what we’ve seen in recent days and weeks.”

Mr Muir urged anyone with information to contact police or Crimestoppers.

“I know this may be difficult because it may be reporting upon a neighbour, but we need to bring the culprits for this to justice,” he added.