The fire and rescue service says that last weekend’s wildfire in Greeba was due to carelessness.

Thirty firefighters and more than 60,000 litres of water were used to tackle a 1km wildfire in the area of Mill Road in Greeba.

The fire was caused by a controlled burn that was no longer under control.

While rain fell over the weekend, there is still a risk of fires breaking out.

The Fire and Rescue Service said: ‘As you may be aware we attended a serious gorse fire on Greeba Mountain over the weekend.

‘This was one of a number of fires we attended due to carelessness and dry vegetation.

‘Please take every precaution to avoid introducing ignition sources to dry vegetation.’

The fire service asked for land owners and gardeners to consider the dry conditions and hold back on bonfires.

It also requested that the public avoids parking cars on long dry grass, as catalytic converters can be hot enough to start a fire.

A spokesperson added: ‘Be careful how you dispose of cigarettes and associated materials.

‘Consider a more traditional picnic rather than disposable barbecues but if you must use one, take an extra large bottle of water along to be sure it is fully extinguished after use.’

At the time, a statement from the fire service said: ‘‘Aside from the expense that this costs the taxpayer, resources were tied up and unavailable for other emergency responses for six hours.

‘And let’s not forget the extra pressure on the emergency services joint control room staff who have to coordinate all these assets as well as dealing with the many other emergency calls that happen at the same time.

‘Please consider this before deciding to burn off or set any outside fires in the summer months.’