The Social Democrats are calling for a ban on the sale of disposable barbecues, saying the Government’s recommendation for shops not to sell them falls short of what is needed.
Government sources yesterday said correspondence will be issued to retailers across the country recommending they cease selling disposable barbecues for the duration of a Status Orange wildfire warning.
The warning remains in place until midday tomorrow – but may be extended.
The Department of Enterprise agreed the move with the National Parks and Wildlife Service following a request from the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management.
The Social Democrats’ Environment spokesperson Jennifer Whitmore said she believes it is not enough for the department to simply write to retailers to request a suspension of the sale of disposable barbecues while warnings are in effect.
“As this recommendation is not legally binding, it will be a toothless, ineffective measure that risks being ignored by some retailers and their customers,” she said.
She added: “A complete ban on the sale of disposable barbecues – underpinned by multi-agency enforcement – should be put in place during periods of active hot weather alerts.
“There is far too much at stake – our natural environment, our wildlife, and the safety of our firefighters and local communities – to rely on a system of self-regulation,” she added.
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Her comments come after authorities in Co Kerry said a fire in Killarney National Park on Tuesday evening, which spread to over 25 hectares of land, was caused by human activity, possibly a disposable barbecue.
The fire damaged lands in the area around Moll’s Gap.
Ms Whitmore added: “With the prolonged spell of extremely hot weather set to continue into next week, we cannot afford to put our natural environment, habitats or wildlife at further risk.”
Shane Gleeson, owner of Gleeson Group in Limerick said he thought the ban on selling disposable barbecues for retailers was “overkill”.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Drivetime, he said that he had recently ordered in a full pallet of barbecues and sold 20 yesterday.
“I think it’s a shame to stop tens of thousands of people having a good time (due to the actions of one person),” he said, adding that fire safety education was a key issue.
“To stop everybody having barbecues doesn’t sound very sensible to me. It sounds like a bit of overkill.”
He said that his staff were not selling the disposable barbecues to teenagers or young adults at the moment, and that the young people said in response that they could just buy them elsewhere.
“I have sold a couple to lads that were in the say 35-45 kind of age bracket. They were just going home to do barbeque for their own kids and their wife.
“I think they were quite safe. We’re also in an urban area. We’re not near any woods or anything like that,” he said.
Footage shows damage of Killarney fire thought possibly started by disposable barbecue
Most of the country remains under an existing Status Yellow high temperature warning, which will come to an end tomorrow morning.
This warning is for Carlow, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Offaly, Westmeath, Cavan, Donegal, Munster and Connacht.
People enjoying the sun on Burrow Beach in Dublin (Photo credit: Collins)
Met Éireann has since issued a further Status Yellow high temperature warning, which will come into effect at 12pm tomorrow.
This warning is for Carlow, Kilkenny, Laois, Offaly, Wexford, Cork, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford.
The warning will come to an end at 8pm tomorrow.
Read more: Hosepipe ban in place amid new Status Yellow weather warning