'Unsung heroes' saved homes from Dagenham grass fire
Twomey said: "They very fact that our team – our front-line maintenance team – worked incredibly hard over the last months to put in the fire breaks that were acknowledged by the London Fire Brigade and others that stopped these fires spreading to residents' homes, I think it has to be acknowledged that they are often the unsung heroes."People won't see that, people won't understand that."
The council leader said the team's actions were not "by chance" but planned out months in advance and carried out regularly.
"They're effective. Without it a number of residents would have probably lost their homes and belongings," he told a council meeting on Tuesday.London Fire Brigade borough commander Blake Betts also said the fire breaks had prevented the blaze from spreading further. He told the BBC: "In this instance they've worked really effectively to stop the spread, or control the spread to one particular area."
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Daily Mail
21 minutes ago
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Tree pruning row explodes in Waltham Forest as families accuse council of 'brutal and inexplicable' branch trims
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Daily Mail
21 minutes ago
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Daily Mail
an hour ago
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Huge swarm of LADYBIRDS hits the UK: Terrified Brits are forced to hide in their cars as thousands of beetles descend on towns and cities - in largest sighting since 1976
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Other posts show ladybirds crawling in their hundreds over prams, cars, umbrellas and even people's food. @benwalters746 Help 😂😂😂 we used to love playing with ladybirds when we was at school #foru #foryoupage❤️❤️ #holiday #amazing #ladybird #infestation #stothys #essex #seaside ♬ Jump Little Ladybird - Mini Vibes Professor Stuart Reynolds, an insect biologist from the University of Bath, told MailOnline: 'Ecology is complicated and this is a multi-factor problem, but it's for sure that the recent hot, dry weather has something to do with it. 'My suggestion is that favourable weather conditions over the last few months have led to a boom in aphid numbers on crop land and woodland. 'Ladybirds eat aphids, so this has led to a consequent boom in ladybirds.' Although the sightings might seem alarming, Professor Reynolds claims there is 'absolutely nothing to worry about.' Professor Reynolds says: 'It's happened before and will happen again. Boom and bust cycles are common in nature. 'Ladybirds may give you just a little nip sometimes - just to check whether you are edible or maybe because your skin is a bit salty - but they won't do any damage. 'It's not a plague! Ladybirds are lovely and we should celebrate them! Everyone loves a ladybird!' Over the last few weeks, Britain's weather has been exceptionally warm, with temperatures peaking at 34.7°C (94.5°F) last Friday. Do ladybirds bite? Ladybirds can and do bite humans when they are swarming. However, they do not have any venom, and their bites are perfectly harmless. At most, these bites will feel like a small pinch and produce very minor irritation. Bites are also rare and generally not due to aggression. Experts say that ladybirds will only 'nip' you to see if you are edible when they are hungry or if your skin tastes particularly salty. Like all insects, ladybirds and aphids speed up their life cycles during the warm weather, which means more insects are born. 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Professor Tim Coulson, science author and biologist at the University of Oxford, told MailOnline: 'Predators, like ladybirds, are incredibly important components of ecosystems. Take away predators, and all hell breaks loose. 'We should cherish our ladybirds! Definitely do not kill the ladybirds as they keep the numbers of pest species down. Much better to have ladybirds than to spray crops with insecticides to kill the aphids.' Likewise, Professor Helen Roy, one of the world's leading ladybird experts from the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, told MailOnline: 'Ladybirds are much-loved insects. So, I hope people can enjoy seeing so many ladybirds and celebrate these incredible insects.' Ladybirds aren't the only insects to have swarmed the UK amid the recent warm weather. Britain has also faced a surge of wasps, an expert has warned. Andrew Dellbridge of Ace Pest Control in Norfolk said the spring sunshine had lured wasps out of hibernation early, giving them more time to grow. And though they'll die off come winter, the head start means this year's nests are already surpassing last year's in size, with months still to go. Now wasps are experiencing a 'population explosion', Mr Dellbridge said, and Britain faces a wave of jumbo nests before winter. He said: 'What I would expect to do in September–October as far as size of nest and multiple wasps within a nest, we're getting now. 'By September–October, the right back end of the season before they all die off, we should be in massive nest territory.'
