Firefighters attend 144 blazes in agricultural buildings in 2024
Firefighters were called to 144 fires in agricultural buildings in 2024, according to data from fire services throughout the country.
This marks a decrease of 25 call outs on the previous year when 169 fires in agricultural buildings were recorded.
Cork County Council reported the fire service attended 21 fires in agricultural buildings last year, the highest of any county.
This was followed by Louth on 10, Monaghan and Kildare with 9 each.
The data, compiled by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, also shows there 1,192 fires across forests, bog and grassland in 2024.
Last year, firefighters across the country attended 1,618 of these types of fires.
The highest number of forest, bog and grassland fires in 2024 were recorded in Cork (195), followed by Waterford (122) and Wicklow (80).
Overall, fire brigades attended almost 20,000 fires in 2024 across various locations including domestic buildings, industrial facilities, motor vehicles, forest and grassland areas, outdoor rubbish sites, right through to ships and aircraft.
Chimneys, flues, hot ashes and soot were the top cause of fire recorded last year.
Fires occurring due to malicious intent and rubbish burning also featured highly in statistics.
Within homes, fires caused by electrical wiring and electrical equipment, cooking and heating all featured as causes of fire attended by fire brigades in 2024.
The data also records 25 total fatalities in 2024 from fire incidents in homes, with 21 of those 25 deaths involving people aged 55 or over.
Keith Leonard, national director for Fire and Emergency Management offered his condolences to the families and friends of people who have lost their lives to fires.
“We can see from these figures that fatalities due to fire incidents are higher amongst those aged 55 and over.
"I would encourage all of us to think of older neighbours and relatives and the next time you are in their homes, check that they have a working smoke alarm – the most important piece of fire safety equipment for the home," he said.
Leonard added that fire incidents are not confined to the home.
"Businesses, commercial buildings and places of work also feature as locations of fire.
"Our fire services also attended a number of fires on open areas and grassland and we would like to remind people that the burning of agricultural land or waste is not permitted without approval from your local fire authority," he said.
