Firefighters ‘pray for rain’ as they battle grass blazes
A SURGE in grass fires around Coventry has left its hardworking firefighters with no options but ‘to pray for rain.’
Firefighters from around the city tackled blazes at Gerard Avenue, Canley; Mitchell Avenue by Earlsdon Rugby Club; Jardine Crescent in Tile Hill and by the Moat House Leisure Centre in Wood End.
Coventry has been without significant rainfall for six weeks, in the country’s longest dry spell for five years.
And the lack of moisture in dead grass and vegetation, plus constant high air temperatures, have made fields tinder dry.
Andrew Higgins, Watch Commander at Binley Fire Station, said crews were facing numerous call outs a day to fires started deliberately.
And despite extensive work in schools he said the only way to slow the firestarters now was to pray for rain.
Andrew said : “It has just got ridiculous - it is all over the news, the people that are doing this - we see them light a fire and hang around, they are loitering. “They are so brazen. “I am struggling to find ways to stop people lighting fires - we go into schools and explain the dangers, but in terms of stopping it all we can do now is pray for rain.
“We are trying everything we can to discourage fires being lit.
“The issue is that the ambient temperatures are so hot, so things ignite very easily. If trees get hot enough they will just light. It has been going on for weeks, with the fires around Manchester on the moors and we have seen the dangers in Greece on TV.
“If I were to say we have ten call-outs a day per vehicle to grass fires, that would be an understatement.”
Commander Neill, at Foleshill Fire Station, who had been deploying the station’s all-terrain brigade response vehicle, told the Telegraph: “We have responded to grassfires all over Coventry, our station has a 20 minute response time, we have noticed an increase in the day now schools have ended, and we are responding to at least five or six a day.”
Warnings of thunder and flooding have been issued by the Met Office and Environment agency.
“They warn severe thunder could strike the region and heavy rain could lead to localised flooding as water runs off the baked ground.