Two barns destroyed in fierce farm blaze

A HUGE fire has destroyed two large barns at a Huddersfield farm.

Firefighters were alerted to the inferno at Dearne Head farm in Haddingley Lane, Cumberworth, at around 2.30am yesterday.

The first crews immediately called for back-up and at its height there were eight fire engines at the scene.

Watch Commander Robin Ferguson, from Huddersfield Fire Station, said: “Our control sent three pumps initially but when we got there, they made it five. After five minutes they upped it to eight.

“Very quickly the priority was protecting neighbouring buildings by preventing the fire from spreading.

“It would have taken millions of gallons of water to put it out. The only way it’s going out is by burning itself out or if it’s turned over with machinery.”

Watch Commander Ferguson added that a major issue was getting enough water to the site of the fire.

“The problem was it’s a very remote location and water supply was hard to get,” he said. “Meltham had a specialist hose-laying appliance that has 2km of hose. We used 1km of it laid from the barn to a mains supply down the road.”

At around 5am West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service issued a smoke warning for residents of nearby Birdsedge, telling them to keep their windows closed.

Firefighters remained at the farm for several hours spreading out the rest of the hay and dampening it down to make sure the fire was fully out.

Joanne Gawthorpe lives at a neighbouring farm in Haddingley Lane. She described the moment she realised her neighbour’s property was ablaze.

“I woke up to this popping noise,” she recalled. “I thought it was somebody out shooting but then I could see the flames.”