Photos show aftermath of field fire caused by unattended bonfire near north Shropshire garden centre
Fire crews were called in to tackle a large blaze in a field near the A49 in north Shropshire after an unattended bonfire spread to nearby grass and undergrowth.
New photographs, shared by the fire service, show the charred aftermath of the large field fire off the A49 in Prees, opposite the Holly Farm Garden Centre.
The Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service was called to the A49 Whitchurch Road at around 5.30pm on Friday, August 15.
Multiple crews, including firefighters from Market Drayton, Prees, Wem and Whitchurch were sent to the scene of the fire.
A spokesperson from Market Drayton Fire Station said a number of 999 calls were recieved about the blaze en route, with callers reporting that the fire was spreading towards agricultural buildings and houses.
They said: "On arriving at the scene, the Whitchurch crew were met with a fire which covered an area of approximately 400 by 100 meters of grass and undergrowth and approximately 100 meters of hedgerow.
"The fire was rapidly spreading towards several buildings, so the crew immediately set about prioritising protecting these using two high pressure hose reel jets."
The fire was quickly contained and brought under control within 30 minutes of the first team arriving on scene, but crews remained at the site for a further two hours damping down and digging out deep-seated fire hotspots.
It was one of dozens of fires that have broken out around the county involving parched grass and undergrowth following the hot and dry summer Shropshire has experienced so far.
The fourth heatwave of the summer hit the country this week - after only 2mm of rainfall overall in the week ending August 12.
Following this latest incident, Market Drayton firefighters were reiterating the service's warning to the public to avoid anything which could trigger a wildfire during the exceptionally dry spell.
"We are pleased to report that through the hard work of crews that the fire was prevented from reaching any buildings, and that there were no injuries to any persons," the spokesperson added.
"We would like to once again ask that people do not have bonfires in this current prolonged dry and warm weather period. A small fire can rapidly grow out of control and spread at a frightening speed in these current conditions.
"These fires can not only threaten life or properties, but also have an impact on the number of fire appliances available across the county to deal with incidents, due to the increased demand on the service during this prolonged dry period."
