Moorland fire cause 'under investigation'

Dozens of firefighters from across West Yorkshire tackled a moorland blaze which broke out on Wednesday afternoon.

A total of 10 fire crews dealt with the blaze, close to Cupwith Reservoir at Marsden, near Huddersfield, West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue said.

The fire service said crews would reattend on Thursday morning to check for hotspots, with the cause of the blaze under investigation.

As well as appliances from Huddersfield, Leeds and Bradford, specialist wildfire teams also helped tackle the blaze, which sent a plume of grey smoke into the sky above the moorland.

In a message to an inquiry on social media, the National Trust said the fire was on private land close to Marsden Moor.

Trust rangers were aware and fire crews were on site, a spokesperson said.

Marsden Moor has previously suffered large-scale damage after fires broke out in recent years.

In May 2024, emergency services attended a 1,000ft (300m) long wildfire which started at Blakeley reservoir.

Meanwhile, two "vast" blazes were started on the moor in April 2023, in what fire crews said were deliberate acts of arson.

In March 2022, fire crews tackled two blazes within a week in the area, with 60 firefighters attending one of the fires which broke out near Cupwith Reservoir.

At the time, West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said crews were dealing with two lines of fire, each one mile (1.6 km) long.

Also in 2022, a 28-year-old man was jailed for setting off a firework on the land the previous year which resulted in 704 acres (285 hectares) of moorland being set alight.

Emergency services have previously warned of the dangers of people taking barbecues and other items with naked flames onto the land.

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.