Firefighters tackle a fire on Black Moor in West Yorkshire

Walkers have been advised to stay off the Mourne Mountains in Northern Ireland as firefighters continue to fight gorse fires in the area.

And moor and mountain fires have broken out across the UK as high winds help spread wildfires started after a long period of dry weather.

Firefighters are tackling moorland blazes in Lancashire, Cumbria and West Yorkshire and forest and grass fires have broken out in north Wales.

A large fire was also engulfing the flanks of Liathach in Torridon and a grass blaze broke out at Glengyle, at the northern end of Loch Katrine.

The fire severity index reached exceptional level on Sunday – five on a scale of five – in large parts of the Peak District, west Pennines, south Pennines, the Forest of Bowland and part of the Three Peaks area of the Yorkshire Dales, triggering an automatic closure of open access land, though public rights of way in those areas remained open.

The levels are forecast to decline through the week, though will remain high in some areas for a few days.

Firefighters on Black Moor, between Keighley and Halifax in West Yorkshire, successfully fought to stop the moorland fire spreading to a nearby caravan park, which was partly evacuated during the height of the blaze.

The Belmont fire, involving both Anglezarke Moor and Wheeton Moor, has been blazing for three days. More than 16 ha (40 acres) of woodland was on fire at Rhos y Gwaliau near Bala.

The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue said the Mourne blazes were thought to have been started deliberately.