A WILDFIRE in the countryside near Wellington on Saturday (July 11) was caused by somebody losing control of a bonfire, Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue (DSFR) said.

The blaze was spotted close to Burlescombe, on the Devon-Somerset border at about 11.30 am and saw both Wellington fire crews mobilised along with firefighters from Cullompton and Tiverton.

Flames ripped through two-and-a-half acres of fields and set light to surrounding trees.

It took the firefighting teams until nearly 3.30 pm to fully extinguish the blaze using two main jets and fire beaters.

A DSFR spokesperson said: “The fire originated from a bonfire that spread out of control.

“Through water shuttling from a nearby hydrant the field and trees were extinguished using hose reels, beaters, fog spike, and a thermal image camera.”

Two-and-a-half acres of countryside near Wellington burned when a bonfire became out of control during the heatwave.
Two-and-a-half acres of countryside near Wellington burned when a bonfire became out of control during the heatwave. (DSFR)

The incident came on the third day of a heat health alert across the Wellington area with temperatures forecast to hit 32C, and after a warnings by both DSFR and Forestry England of the risk of wildfires in the countryside during the hot weather.

Both organisations reminded people to ‘never to light a fire or barbecue in forests or woodlands’.

A spokesperson said: “While the risk of wildfire in the countryside is always high, a hot, dry start to summer has created extremely high risk conditions for fires to start and get out of control.

“As this weekend predicts ongoing high temperatures and increasing wind speed, the Met Office’s natural hazards partnership has issued an ‘extreme wildfire alert’, prompting agencies to ask the public for their support.

“Fire can travel at huge speed both above ground and through soil, popping up and continuing to burn elsewhere.

“Something as small as a cigarette butt or disposable barbecue can quickly become a large and dangerous emergency situation.

“Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service has already attended forest fires caused by careless actions this summer, and attended 51 incidents in woods and forests last year.

“Several of these call-outs were also required because of human carelessness, including at least one barbecue that was not properly disposed of.”

Forestry England area manager Katy Mansell said: “While hot, sunny weather feels like the perfect time to get together with friends and family in nature, I cannot overstate the danger of lighting barbecues and fires in the countryside.

“Each time we manage to safely extinguish a forest fire, we feel very thankful that the outcome was not a very different story.

“Forest fires put lives at risk, destroy habitats, kill wildlife, and put our emergency services in harm’s way.

“It is incredibly sad that, in many cases, this could be entirely prevented by treating the countryside more responsibly. “

DSFR wildfire specialist Ian Donnovan said: “Every year, we see so many preventable wildfires caused by people lighting fires and barbecues in the countryside.

“Wildfires can begin with just a spark, or a gust of wind blowing a barbecue flame.

“Wildfires can take many days to extinguish have an impact our wildlife, ecosystems, and local communities.

“Wildfires take resources away from other emergencies.”