- More than 50 households evacuated
- Military assistance to be considered
- Blaze declared a ‘major incident’ at 10pm on Tuesday
- Government has situation ‘under constant review’
- 6km of area affected by fires
- Council leader pleads for ‘a really, really good downpour’
The Army is on standby as a huge fire on Saddleworth Moor above Manchester continues to burn.
Dozens of homes were evacuated after the blaze spread dangerously close to residential areas in Carrbrook, Stalybridge.
About 35 homes had been abandoned by about 11.30pm on Tuesday and the electricity supply in Calico Crescent – one of the worst affected areas – was cut off. By Wednesday that number had reached 50.
High temperatures and strong winds are believed to have exacerbated the situation, which was declared a major incident by 999 crews at about 10pm.
Leon Parkes, assistant chief fire officer with Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said: “We’ve got over 6km of affected area – there is a fire occurring in pockets around the outskirts. The plan today is to try and really, really put some resource on the scene and put a heavy attack on this fire – if that needs military assistance, that’s what we’ll consider.”
Speaking in Calico Close, Dave Keelan, director of emergency response at Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, told reporters that 70 of its firefighters were tackling the blaze. He said talks were ongoing to see if the Army could assist in the firefighting operation by utilising extra personnel, four-wheel drive vehicles and air support.
He said: “Some work is ongoing at the minute with our colleagues in the military to see if it is possible for them to assist us in any way and those discussions are currently taking place with my operational incident commander to see if that can be achieved in the short term.”
Brenda Warrington, leader of Tameside Borough Council, said: “One of the things we need, and I don’t usually ask for this in this kind of weather, is a really, really good downpour, sustained for quite some time. That is really the only thing that will deal with this fire.
“The fire and rescue lads are doing everything they can to contain it and protect us but we do need Mother Nature to help us, quite frankly.”
Prime Minister Theresa May has told MPs that the Government is keeping the situation in Saddleworth “under constant review”.
Mrs May, speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions, paid tribute to emergency service personnel and offered her sympathy to all those affected by the blaze.
She said: “The Home Office is monitoring the situation closely with the National Resilience Assurance team.
“So far no request for Government support has been made from Manchester Fire and Rescue but we are keeping this under constant review and operational policy arrangements are in place to provide support if required.”
Roads and schools were closed and people not in the immediate vicinity were ordered to stay indoors and keep their doors and windows shut as firefighters battled to contain the blaze, reportedly “the biggest in living memory”.
According to the Manchester Evening News, “the sun turned red and ash rained from the sky as the fire raged above Oldham and Tameside for the third night running”.
Church halls were opened to offer refuge to those forced to flee their homes and police advised those with nowhere to go to contact Tameside Council.
The council said in a statement: “Residents in areas affected by smoke should stay indoors, keep their doors and windows closed, and tune in to the local radio station for advice and information.
“Motorists who have to travel through the smoke should keep windows closed, turn off air conditioning and keep their air vents closed. If people need to be outdoors, they are advised to avoid areas affected by any smoke or ash, or to limit the time that they spend in them.
“Smoke can irritate air passages, the skin and the eyes leading to coughing and wheezing, breathlessness and chest pain.
“It can also worsen existing problems such as asthma and people with asthma should carry their inhaler with them at all times.”
Health and safety advice was issued at regular intervals on Monday by public health officials and emergency crews, who said people with breathing problems were particularly at risk and should contact the NHS non-emergency line if they needed advice.
Greater Manchester Fire Service said it had been battling around the clock to bring the fire under control “in extremely difficult circumstances” and thanked members of the public for their support.
Service group manager for Tameside, Phil Nelson, said: “Crews are still tackling this difficult fire and are working hard to contain the blaze and prevent further fire spread.
“Firefighters are faced with very difficult circumstances, intense heat and are working on challenging terrain.
“Our main considerations are for crew welfare. It is physically draining working at this incident and it is vital that our firefighters have regular breaks and that relief crews are available to take over.
“I would like to thank the Salvation Army for keeping our crews fed and watered during this incident.
“We are co-ordinating our efforts with our partners at the Peak District, United Utilities and Ranger Services and will continue to into the evening.”
The initial blaze on land near Buckton Vale initially broke out just before 8.20pm on Sunday, but was brought under control within in a couple of hours.
But widespread heatwave conditions caused the fire to reignite on Monday morning, with about two square kilometres ablaze between Stalybridge and Dove Stone at its height.
Carrbrook resident Dee Blanchard, 28, told the MEN on Monday evening: “It’s getting a bit frightening.
“We’ve got double glazing but we’ve had to put damp towels around their windows and doors.
“You can’t go outside, you can barely see.
“The firefighters are trying to connect hoses to hoses because there’s no access point near them.
“There’s a fireman in a white hat who I think is in charge and he said we might have to evacuate.”
It has not been established what might have caused the fire.