Wildlife Killed in Arson Attack on Mountain

Around five acres of grassland and wildlife were destroyed after arsonists set light to a South Wales mountainside yesterday.

Firefighters tackled the blaze most of the day and into the evening on the Graig mountain near Abertridwr at around 3pm.

Crews from Caerphilly and Whitchurch spent hours trying to stop the fire spreading to houses in the neighbouring terrace of Graig y Fedw.

They were hampered by the steep and rough terrain and dry bracken, grassland and six foot-high ferns which caught light spreading flames over most of the mountain which is a haven to a variety of wildlife.

Watch manager Richard Lever, based at Caerphilly fire station, said: “There is always wildlife in such areas where there is thick dense ferns. I don’t think people realise this when they light up.

“The fire also came close to houses and garages and we had to make sure it didn’t go that far down.

“It took us a long time because of the dangers with the houses and because it was very steep, we had difficulty gaining access to it.”

The first Caerphilly crews were relieved by their night watch and help from Cefn Fforest firefighters who stayed at the site until around 11pm last night.

(c) 2007 South Wales Echo. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.