Concern over council’s evacuation plans

Concern over council’s evacuation plans

30 April 2025

A CAMPAIGN group opposed to the gondola ride into the Mournes has claimed Newry, Mourne and Down Council is “unwilling or unable” to share evacuation plans for its £44m flagship tourism project.

The scheme to ferry people to a proposed visitor centre at a disused quarry is being financed by the Belfast Region City Deal and the local authority.

Last week, the National Trust warned that four years on from the devastating fire that ravaged the Mournes in 2021 and the spate of wildfires earlier this month, that it will take years for the precious landscape to recover.

The warning is at the heart of a new report on the condition, recovery and approach to managing its land within the Mournes which the conservation charity has launched.

The Donard Nature Recovery Report highlights the fragility of the delicate habitats in this area and outlines the condition of the land, particularly following the fire in April 2021 which destroyed 720 acres which was transformed into a lunar landscape.

Mr Geoff Ingram, founder of the Mourne Gateway Info Group said the question of evacuating the visitor centre and gondolas was one of many campaigners have asked regarding the design and running of the project that the council seemed unwilling or unable to answer. 

“It seems impossible that, in an emergency, hundreds of people could be evacuated quickly from the visitors’ centre at the same time as a large number of emergency vehicles have to use the same track to reach the building,” he said.

“How the gondolas themselves will be evacuated has also never been explained.”

Mr Ingram said the local council had been planning this project for several years, but seemed “totally incapable” of giving any detailed answers to either stakeholders or ratepayers.

Last month, consultants who hosted a public engagement event on the gondola project published their draft report which appeared online before it was removed.

It said respondents identified concerns about the increased risk of wildfires, noting that current visitor numbers already pose a fire risk to the mountains, and the influx of additional tourists could exacerbate this danger.”

This section of the report added: “There were worries that the gondola structure, along with the surrounding wildlife, could be severely damaged by fires. 

“The feedback emphasised the need for effective fire prevention measures and questioned the project’s overall feasibility given the heightened fire risk.”