Firefighters battle huge moor blaze
FLAMES SPOTTED FROM SEVEN MILES AWAY, WHILE GIANT SMOKE PLUME PICTURED FROM SPACE
THESE extraordinary photographs capture the scale of the huge wildfire that has engulfed the moors over Saddleworth.
The flames spewed a massive plume of smoke into the blue skies would could be seen across several counties.
The blaze - which first started on Sunday night - stretched across two square kilometres of moorland between Buckton Vale and Dove Stone Reservoir.
Greater Manchester Fire Service said a local gamekeeper initially helped them extinguish it, but due to the conditions caused by the ongoing heatwave the fire reignited yesterday at around 7.50am.
By yesterday afternoon, the fire was sending a massive tower of smoke into the air which was spotted by people across Greater Manchester.
The flames were clearly visible from Ashton-under-Lyne – seven miles away – while smoke was pictured in parts of Cheshire, around 15 miles away.
The smoke plume was even captured in an image of Britain taken from space by a European satellite.
Station Manager Dave Swallow, who is leading the fire service response, described it as a ‘challenging incident’.
“The land is well alight and crews are using Forced Air Firefighting Units, which are like industrial leaf blowers, water spray backpacks, small diameter hoses and beaters to extinguish the flames,” he said last night.
“It’s a challenging incident for our crews due to the heat and the fact the area involved in fire is around two miles from the nearest access point.
“We are having to get in extra fire engines to set up a water relay system from Dovestones Reservoir. The incident is causing a big smoke plume above the area but it is only really affecting the moorland area.
“If there is smoke in your area, please try and keep windows and doors closed.”
There were five crews on the scene, four of which are specialist Wildfire Units, plus a number of officers.
Greater Manchester Fire Service told the M.E.N. this is the 18th time in the last 12 months they’ve been called to the area to tackle blazes.