In Belfast's Donegall Avenue, a man and a woman were taken to hospital with smoke inhalation after a fire in their home.

It started at about 0430 GMT on Monday and it is believed to have been caused by an electrical fault.

The latest industrial action - scheduled to last eight days - began at 0900 GMT on Friday.

Tony Blair: Deal must not risk economic stability

In Londonderry, the alarm was raised at about midnight on Sunday at the Tilly and Henderson building.

It is the eighth time the Goddesses have been called out to the derelict building since the strike began.

Since 2100 GMT on Sunday, the Army has dealt with 66 calls in Northern Ireland - six of which were hoaxes and 22 genuine calls.

Since the beginning of the fire brigade strike, there have been 470 emergency calls, 96 of which were hoaxes and 182 genuine calls.

At the weekend, striking firefighters in Armagh were criticised for leaving a house fire in the city without helping to put it out.

Two homes were destroyed in the blaze. No-one was injured.

The firefighters left their picket line to attend the fire on the Newry Road, but pulled back once it became clear there was no risk to life.

Charles Johnson, whose son's house was burned said he was disgusted by the attitude of the striking firefighters.

Charles Johnson criticised the firefighters

"Once they had established there was no life at risk and all the houses had been evacuated, they said it was no longer their responsibility, that they couldn't do anything about putting the fire out.

The fire was dealt with by two Yellow Goddesses and a team of retained firefighters.

More than a dozen firefighters used specialist cutting equipment to release four people, including two children, who were trapped after a head-on car crash near Dungiven, in County Londonderry.

All were taken to hospital after the accident on Saturday night where their condition was described as stable.

Meanwhile, Tony Blair has told the nation that giving in to the firefighters' 40% pay claim was unrealistic and would have "dire" consequences for the economy.

In a televised statement, which is seen as a direct intervention in the dispute by the prime minister, he said the only way forward was through negotiation and he hoped this would be sooner rather than later.

As the dispute entered the fourth day of the stoppage, cabinet minister Peter Hain said Mr Blair hoped to create "a very clear understanding that we want the firefighters to achieve a just settlement".

"They deserve justice. Their situation has been ignored for far too long by everybody concerned," Mr Hain added.

Over the weekend, chancellor Gordon Brown said a 16% pay rise for firefighters - without savings from new working practices - would be unaffordable.

His comments contrasted with Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, who held out the prospect of a 16% rise over three years.