Shropshire firefighters tackle a series of 'out of control' bonfires despite dry weather warnings
Shropshire firefighters were called to three separate incidents involving out of control bonfires in under two hours on Monday (August 18) - after the service issued warnings about the dangers in dry weather.
Firefighters from across Shropshire were mobilised to fires in Shrewsbury, Bishops Castle and Market Drayton on Monday afternoon after bonfires became out of control.
The first incident was reported to the Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) at around 3.10pm.
Two crews rushed to Racecourse Avenue in Shrewsbury from Shrewsbury Fire Station, where they found a bonfire in a residential garden which had "spread to surrounding areas".
Within 20 minutes of the first call, another was made to the emergency services regarding a bonfire on School House Lane in Bishops Castle.
By the time a fire crew arrived from the town's station, the blaze had spread to cover an area measuring around 150 square metres.
At just before 5pm, a third call was made to the county's fire service - this time about a bonfire on Sydnall Lane in Market Drayton.
Firefighters from Hodnet attended the scene, where they reported fire had spread to surrounding grass and trees.
These are just a fraction of the fires that have broken out around the county in recent weeks, which have prompted the fire service to issue warnings over bonfires.
The fourth heatwave of the summer hit the country last week - after only 2mm of rainfall overall in the previous week.
Following a recent incident in Market Drayton, the fire service was reiterating their warning to the public to avoid anything that could trigger a wildfire during the exceptionally dry spell.
A SFRS spokesperson said: "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."
