Offaly Fire service was called out to 572 incidents in 2025
Design consultants have been appointed to develop a new Fire Station in Clara
THE fire service in Offaly was called out to 572 incidents during 2025, a recent meeting of Offaly County Council in the county buildings at Aras an Chontae in Tullamore was told.
During the year, 323 of the incidents were fire-related and 249 were “other emergencies” (which includes Chimney Fires, Car/Vehicle Fires, Bog and Forest Fires, Hazardous Materials Incidents, Rescues, Flooding, and Road Traffic collisions).
The responses were coordinated from the five fire stations across the county.
Offaly County Fire and Rescue Service operates 24/7, 365 days a year and its mission is to “protect life, property, and the environment through emergency response, fire prevention, education, and enforcement.”
The meeting was told that each firefighter was fitted with a new set of PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) at a cost of over €100,000 during 2025.
Construction was also completed on the new Learning and Development Centre in Tullamore and it provides training courses on a local, regional and national basis.
The state-of-the-art centre features a modern drill training ground for live exercises, an advanced lecture room with the latest AV technology, dedicated briefing rooms, modern changing facilities, and a specialized decontamination area for safely handling equipment.
Strategically placed in the midlands, it acts as a shared national resource and has already hosted fire crews from across the country.
A new Fire Appliance, worth €450,000, was also delivered to Edenderry.
The Breathing Apparatus Training Centre in Tullamore continues to serve Offaly and other authorities.
Design consultants have been appointed to develop a new Fire Station in Clara. This new station will be a purpose-built fire station headquarters, backed by a major €3 million investment.
The funding, allocated as part of the government's Fire Services Capital Programme, was formally announced in April 2026 to ensure the long-term safety and operational capacity of emergency response services in the area.
The new headquarters replaces the original facility, which was located on a confined site that lacked the footprint required for modern expansion and essential upgrades.
The operational fire service throughout all the stations located across county Offaly is a retained Fire Service, i.e. fire fighters carry a pager and are expected to report to a fire station within five minutes and go mobile to the incident as is the norm in rural Ireland.
Meanwhile Offaly Fire and Rescue Service is urging the public to take extra care during the current spell of warm, dry weather.
Firefighters have been called out to a number of incidents recently, which were related to the dry conditions.
The Service is asking people to exercise caution when using barbecues and ensure that all embers are fully extinguished before leaving the area.
The general public is also being encouraged to report any fires as soon as they are spotted.
A number of forest fires took place in recent days across the country including at Slievenamon in neighbouring county Tipperary.