Marsden Moor barbeque blazes prompt fire service warning

Fire crews have found three lit barbecues near to where a mile-long moorland fire burned last year.

They were discovered on Sunday close to Marsden Moor in West Yorkshire, which was engulfed by flames in April 2021, West Yorkshire Fire Service said.

The area is covered by a special order which bans the use of fires, barbecues or fireworks.

A fire service spokesperson described the consequences of another blaze as "potentially devastating".

Crews tackled the moor fire above Huddersfield for three days in April 2021 in an operation said to have cost £500,000.

Viktor Riedly admitted causing the blaze, which started at Black Moss Reservoir, when he lit a firework.

He was jailed for 12 months at Leeds Crown Court.

Fire crews say they found the barbecues in isolated spots close to the moorland.

Richard Hawley, a spokesperson for West Yorkshire fire service, said: "When our crews are called to these completely avoidable incidents, there is not only a high financial cost, but they are taken away from protecting our communities in other areas."

He also stressed the need for visitors to understand the "seriousness and importance" of public spaces protection orders (PSPOs) across the region's moorland.

Ian Dowson from the National Trust expressed his frustration at seeing barbecues being used on the moors again "especially after the fire last April caused so much damage to wildlife and precious peat habitat".

Marsden Moor is a Site of Special Scientific Interest famous for its rare ground-nesting birds and blanket peat bogs.

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