Arrest made following Cave Hill gorse fire
A teenage boy has been arrested in west Belfast following a gorse fire at Cave Hill.
The blaze began on Wednesday evening, but has now been extinguished. Firefighters assessed the fire by drone on Thursday morning and added there was no risk to life or property.
People living nearby had been advised to keep their windows closed and to avoid the area. The boy was arrested on suspicion of arson by detectives investigating the blaze.
The PSNI said the fire was reported around 21:20 on Wednesday. Chief Inspector Fox said: “Lighting uncontrolled gorse fires is highly irresponsible and has the potential to cause widespread damage to the environment and harm to wildlife, as well as threatening homes, farms and the people living in those areas.
“The unpredictability of fire can also mean that those causing them may be putting their own lives at risk as well as the lives of the fire service personnel and other emergency services tasked to deal with them.
“Police will be proactive in robustly investigating such reports and would urge landowners and members of the public to be vigilant and report any suspicious activity to Police through 101, online or in an emergency 999.”