Firefighters have thanked the farming community for their help tackling a huge gorse fire in the south of the Island this weekend.
The blaze was reported at around 5pm on Saturday, on land owned by the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture at Ballamodha.
With the threat of the fire spreading to the nearby Stoney Mountain Plantation, fire crews from Douglas and Castletown used offroad vehicles to tackle the flames.
At one point, the blaze covered 600 square metres area with two main fires fanned by strong winds.
The Fire and Rescue Service says operations were hampered by uneven, boggy ground and approaching darkness – but crews managed to stop the blaze just 20 metres from the plantation.
Station Officer Colin Kirkham said if the blaze had reached the trees, the incident would have escalated rapidly.
But he praised fire personnel who tackled the flames as well as what he calls the invaluable help provided by the local farming community which volunteered tractors and off road vehicles.
An investigation later revealed the incident began when a local farmer lost control of a deliberately-set fire to clear a small amount of gorse.