Look who firefighters rescued as they contained a large gorse fire on the Slieve Bloom Mountains
A large gorse fire on the Slieve Bloom Mountains has been contained.
Firefighters have been battling the blaze on the Laois/Offaly border for three days
The fire swept through hundreds of hectares of forestry and has caused millions of euro worth of damage.
In the course of their operation, the Offaly Fire & Rescue Service saved a young deer.
They posted a photo of the lucky creature, saying: "This little deer was rescued by firefighters yesterday. A brighter future for it now!"
Managing Director of Coillte, Gerard Murphy, says the damage is significant.
He said: "It's very early to say at the moment because we have been concentrating on fighting the fire, but I would say from my own estimates that a couple of hundred hectares at the moment.
"But the real risk is we have a couple of thousand hectares altogether.
"So at this moment in time, I would certainly conservatively say it is multi-million damage at the moment
