Firefighters work to extinguish gorse fire in the Mourne Mountains

The Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service (NIFRS) have dealt with an incident involving a large area of gorse on fire in the Mourne Mountains.

NIFRS crews remained at the scene on Sunday afternoon after the fire had been extinguished to damp down the area near Leitrim Road in Hilltown.

Eight pumping appliances incorporating 64 personnel attended the scene.

An NIFRS Spokesperson said: "We are appealing to the public to avoid the area completely to allow us to deal with the incident safely.

"Local residents should keep their windows and doors closed.

"Firefighting operations will be ongoing throughout the day.”

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