The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has issued a Condition Orange warning, indicating high fire risk for vegetation.

The warning came into effect at midday yesterday (Monday, April 20) and will remain in place until midday of next Monday (April 27).

This is the first such warning this year based on the weather conditions. An earlier Condition Yellow fire warning was issued last month, but that is the default condition between March and September.

The department said that the warning is arising from current and forecast weather patterns.

A high fire risk is currently deemed to exist in all areas where hazardous fuels such as dead grasses, and shrub fuels such as heather and gorse, exist.

Current high-pressure conditions are forecast to transition to easterly high-pressure conditions during the span of this notice.

While some areas may be subject to rain during this time, elevated fire risks are expected in all areas during this period, especially western coastal and northwestern areas.

Fire behaviour, spread rates and difficulty of suppression will be strongly influenced by increasingly dry fuel conditions, low humidity levels associated with easterly winds, and moderate to fresh windspeeds.

Windspeeds can be expected to exceed 30kph at times in some southern areas during the span of this notice.

The department said increased vigilance to fire is warranted in areas with open public access, active turf-cutting and other high-risk activities.

Landowners and managers should remain vigilant to all fireactivity and report all suspicious activity to An Garda Síochána.

Visitors to public recreational areas should cooperate with all fire safety requirements, and should not light open fires or barbeques in high risk areas.

People in or visiting rural areas should cooperate with all requests regarding fire safety, obey all relevant bye-laws, and be considerate in parking vehicles so as not to impede access by emergency vehicles.

Forest owners and managers

All forest owners and managers are advised to prepare for likely outbreaks of fire.

Fire lines, fire plans, and fire suppression equipment should be reviewed and made ready and other relevant contingencies, such as insurance and helicopter contracts, should be checked and confirmed.

The department recommends that forest owners and managers should consider mitigation measures that they can put in place to help prevent loss or damage to forest resources through fire.

Owners and managers should carry out a risk assessment on their properties, considering the presence of hazardous fuel vegetation on neighbouring lands, and whether there is a history of land burning in the vicinity.

Fire plans should be developed for all forests, and should include a map showing access routes and assembly points for firefighting personnel and equipment, and potential sources of water.

The plan should also include contact details for the emergency services, local private and Coillte foresters, neighbouring landowners, and forest owners.

Owners and managers are also advised to consider actively patrolling for fire in known hotspots.

The department is also reminding owners and managers that it is an offence to cut, grub or burn vegetation between March 1 and August 31.