Jason Moncrieff, the area manager for Dorset and Wiltshire, said the service was “massively stretched” by the increase in fire incidents in the area. “It’s a huge difference. In the first 10 days of August this year compared to last year, there were 492 percent more such fires. So it’s field fires, grass fires, moorland fires – all those types of fires in the countryside, an increase of 492 per cent this year,” Mr Moncrieff told the BBC’s Today programme. He added that a fire on Friday on the Studland Peninsula near Purbeck was caused by an outdoor barbecue, so it could have been avoided. Countryside areas in Dorset are ‘dry’, officers have warned (Swanage Fire Station) Emergency services were called to extinguish the fire at around 1pm. At one point 90 crews were working to extinguish the flames and firefighters remained at the scene through the night. The flames spread to the Isle of Purbeck, forcing police to evacuate Studland Beach, which was busy with people out in the sun. The fire service is warning people not to use outdoor barbecues where grass has dried up after weeks of hot and dry conditions and a red fire alert is now in place across Dorset and Wiltshire for the next few days. “Strangely, yesterday’s fire looks like it was started by a disposable barbecue,” Mr Moncrieff said. “There can’t be many people in Britain who don’t know that right now the advice is don’t bring barbecues, don’t use barbecues, especially disposable barbecues, in these places like Studland Heath. That’s our message: bring a picnic – don’t bring a barbecue.” The area’s countryside is “dry”, added group director Stuart Gillion. “This not only increases the risk of fires spreading quickly, but also increases the risk of ignition. We urge local farmers to take extra care, as sparks from hot machinery can easily lead to a field catching fire, and we ask everyone who enjoys our beautiful countryside and coastline to be careful and vigilant with anything that could start a fire .”
Drought ‘could last for months’
It comes after the Environment Agency (EA) warned that England’s drought could persist for months, even into 2023. John Curtin, executive director of local business at the EA, said that after the driest summer for 50 years, it will take “weeks”. value of rain” to replenish water sources. The drought could persist into the new year, the Environment Agency has warned (Swanage Fire Station) Eight of the 14 regions monitored by the EA are now classified as suffering from drought, including Devon and Cornwall, Solent and South Downs, Kent and South London, Herts and North London, East Anglia, Thames, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire and the East Midlands. Although the EA has reassured the public that essential water supplies are safe, Thames Water has been forced to set up temporary bottled water sites across Surrey as water has been cut off in the area or dropped to low pressure following a technical problem during of the night. “We are very sorry if you have no water or low pressure due to the technical problems at Netley Mill’s water treatment works. We are doing everything we can to get supplies back to normal as quickly as possible,” Thames Water said in a statement on Saturday. Frustrated locals could be seen queuing at water points in Cranleigh and Surrey Hills after waking up to find they had no water. Surrey South West MP Jeremy Hunt commented on the situation, assuring residents that Thames Water staff were working “around the clock” to resolve the issue. His intervention was met with criticism as social media users said he was using the incident as a “photograph”. Former England footballer Graeme Le Saux, who lives in the area, responded: “It’s all about you, isn’t it? While people suffer, you happily support the mismanagement of vital infrastructure. There is no bottled water at the pick-up points, they have already run out. But hey, great choice to send some meaningless tweet!”
“Shower for four minutes”
Meanwhile, Southern Water, which imposed a pipe ban this month, advised the public to save water by only flushing the toilet when needed, taking four-minute showers and collecting shower water to flush the toilet. Water companies urged consumers to adjust their habits in order to save water (Swanage Fire Station) Piling more pressure on the Conservatives, Labor has called on the government to convene a Cobra meeting to ensure water supplies are protected during the drought. The party’s deputy leader, Angela Rayner, said: “This is the second major heatwave in weeks, but this Tory government is once again failing our country. Conservative inaction on drought warnings is creating a dusting of dust in Britain. “Instead of intervening, the ministers fell asleep in the midday sun. They lecture the public about using hoses, but where is their plan to protect our vital water system? “It’s almost a year since they started the consultation on the National Resilience Strategy, and yet they don’t have a unified plan. It’s all spin and no substance.” More extreme heat and drought conditions were expected in the southern half of the UK this weekend, while the northern half is expected to see storms and flooding. The Met Office has issued an orange heat warning covering most of England and Wales, with temperatures of up to 34C forecast for Saturday and Sunday.
