Staff from the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) will monitor some locations with helicopters over the coming days due to a high fire-risk warning.
They will be among a team including conservation rangers, An Garda Síochána and the fire service working to reduce the incidence of wildfires as temperatures are set to soar.
Met Éireann has issued a Status Yellow weather warning for temperatures of up to 30° for the entire country from midday on Friday (August 12) to 6:00a.m on Sunday (August 14).
A Status Yellow high temperature warning is currently in place for counties in Munster and Leinster.
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) yesterday issued a ‘Condition Orange’ forest fire warning for the coming days, with the risk set to peak on Saturday and Sunday.
The NPWS has appealed to members of the public to be conscious of the dangers posed by fire and to exercise extreme caution over this high risk period.
It said that recent similar periods of hot weather have resulted in increased fire activity firmly associated with public recreation activities.
Under the Wildlife Act 1976, lighting a fire which causes or is likely to cause the burning of vegetation within a mile of a woodland or nature reserve is an offence and those responsible may be prosecuted.
“The message is simple – be careful,” Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan, said.
“Don’t light fires or barbecues, keep access roads clear for emergency services, and if you’re camping, let someone know where you’ll be.
“There is a high risk of fire right now. Be vigilant and keep yourself and the wild places we all love safe,” the minister added.
The NPWS said that fires are particularly destructive in the spring and summer months as birds and mammals rear their young. Irreparable damage can also be caused to native woodlands that can take centuries to recover.
It also noted that fires are very difficult to extinguish at this time of the year.
A fire on July 19, which burnt over 200ha of upland conservation habitat and woodland in the national park and the adjacent Coillte forest in Glencree, Co. Wicklow, continues to burn underground despite being repeatedly doused with water.
The NPWS said it will take a prolonged period of very heavy rain to completely extinguish the fire.