A moorland fire near an RAF base in North Yorkshire has been declared a major incident.
Crews were first called to Langdale Moor after reports of smoke on Monday and found the blaze had jumped a firebreak.
An overnight watch took place but by Tuesday morning, the fire covered 300 x 300m, growing to 1km x 1km by the afternoon.
Water bowsers, six fire engines and all-terrain vehicles were being used to fight the fire – near RAF Fylingdales – early on Wednesday.
North Yorkshire Fire Service said the blaze had shrunk overnight, but by 12.30pm it had spread to cover 5sq km and was declared a major incident.
Pictures posted on Facebook by Bedale fire station showed the fire burning overnight, while drone footage filmed on Tuesday showed huge flames and vast clouds of smoke.
More resources are now being sent to the scene in an effort to bring it under control.
The hot, dry weather in the UK has made such fires more likely and a fire on heathland in Dorset was also declared a major incident at the weekend.
Crews were still on site at Holt Heath today, dealing with hotspots and occasional flare-ups sparked by wind.
However, Dorset and Wiltshire Fire Service said “good progress” was being made across all four sectors of the incident.
Wildfires causing havoc in Europe
European nations have been dealing with much more destructive fires this summer in what is becoming a growing problem – especially in the south of the continent.
At least 1,400 firefighters were deployed in France’s southern Aude region last week to try to stop the country’s biggest wildfire in decades from reigniting.
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About 7,700 residents were also evacuated yesterday from near the Greek city of Patras, west of Athens.
People were also ordered to move as fires spread on the popular holiday islands of Chios and Kefalonia.
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In Spain, a 35-year-old volunteer firefighter died from burns after trying to build firebreaks near the town of Nogarejas. He is the sixth person to die in wildfires in the country this year.
Other serious fires have also broken out this summer in Turkey and Albania, where authorities said 10,000 personnel were battling 24 wildfires.
