Homes evacuated as field left ablaze

Fifty houses had to be evacuated and a major incident was declared after a fire in a field near Bromsgrove.

It involved 80 acres of fields, as well as a tractor, a stable block and a container storing about 30 tonnes of hay at Linehouse Lane, on Saturday, at about 17:40 BST, Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service (HWFRS) said.

Local farmers used five tractors with ploughs to create a fire break and 12 fire engines were sent to the scene, supported by officers from West Midlands fire and West Midlands Ambulance services.

On Sunday, the fire service told the BBC the blaze had been started by an unattended cooking pan in a field, but it has now said that was not the cause.

On Monday, the fire service, which has released drone footage of the damage, said the blaze was not believed to be deliberate and arson was not suspected. The actual cause of the fire has not been given.

A spokeswoman said HWFRS had received an unprecedented number of calls over the weekend because of the heat wave and many of the calls were linked to fires in the open.

Because of the high number of calls, HWFRS initiated a procedure that allowed other fire services to assist in taking 999 calls.

"Firefighters and fire control worked tirelessly to deal with this incident, with crews working to tackle the blaze and bring it under control, with the support of local farmers who helped create the fire break," a spokeswoman said.

People who had to leave their homes were moved to a rest centre and returned the same evening, she added.

The whole area affected by the incident, including the houses that were evacuated, covered 100 hectares.

No-one is believed to have been injured.

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