Latest news with #LondonFireBrigade
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Public urged to 'avoid the area' as smoke billows from building fire in Sidcup
People are being urged to avoid Blackfen Road in Sidcup as around 60 firefighters battle a large fire at a building under renovation. Eight fire engines were sent to the scene after flames engulfed a shop with flats above at 1.10pm today (July 22). The entire ground floor, first floor, and roof are alight, and part of the roof of a neighbouring building has also caught fire. Station Commander Steve Howlett, who is at the scene, said: 'This is a very visible fire which is producing a significant amount of smoke in the area. READ MORE: LIVE updates as major fire breaks out at house under renovation in Sidcup "Please keep your windows and doors closed if you live or work in the vicinity.' A 32-metre turntable ladder is being used as a water tower to tackle the flames from above. Blackfen Road has been closed and some local bus routes are affected. Crews from Eltham, Lee Green, Sidcup, East Greenwich and other surrounding fire stations are responding after the brigade received nearly 30 emergency calls. The cause of the fire is not yet known.
The Independent
3 days ago
- Climate
- The Independent
Huge blaze breaks out in Essex field as firefighters battle wildfires across UK
A huge blaze has broken out in a field in Essex as firefighters continue to battle wildfires across the UK. Firefighters rushed to the scene to tackle the blaze when it broke out near Amersham Court in Rayleigh on Friday. Dramatic images posted on social media show the fire raging, with flames engulfing the field and smoke billowing up into the sky. Heatwaves and consistent dry weather have seen the London Fire Brigade tackle more wildfires this summer than in the whole of 2024. A senior firefighter said that crews were experiencing a 'busy summer' and that they were working under 'very challenging conditions' to bring the blazes under control. Wildfires have even been raging in Scotland this summer, a place that rarely sees blazes break out. The Scottish Gamekeepers Association warned the fires were limiting the ability of 'stretched' firefighters to respond to other emergencies, so they were 'becoming a danger to human life'. Essex County Fire and Rescue Service said its crews have been working hard to put out the fire in Rayleigh on Friday, which was in danger of spreading to nearby properties. It confirmed the blaze did reach one outbuilding, but no one was injured in the incident. Residents told local media that mobile homes near the blaze were evacuated after an electric pylon was set alight. Around three hectares of standing crop were on fire, according to Your Southend. It added that road closures and the effects of the smoke on visibility had caused congestion on roads in the surrounding area. The fire service issued a warning to motorists to drive carefully as smoke was blowing over the A129 and A1245. In an update on Friday afternoon, group manager Marc Diggory confirmed the incident has now been downscaled. He added that crews were set to remain at the scene for a few hours to dampen down hotspots, with road closures expected to lift soon. It comes after a large grass fire broke out in Dagenham on Monday evening, with 125 firefighters and 20 fire engines used to bring the blaze near Clemence Road under control. While fences, sheds and garden furniture were damaged, firefighters successfully prevented the blaze from spreading to homes in the area. Another two fires also broke out, with 60 firefighters tackling a blaze spreading across six hectares in Hornchurch, and another 60 crew members deployed to a grass fire on Walthamstow Marshes. A fourth grass fire broke out across six acres in Upminster on Tuesday afternoon. Borough commander Blake Betts told the BBC that the three fires on Monday evening had been 'a lot' for the force, but specialist training had ensured they were prepared for the incident. Also in July, fields were torched in Marlbrook, Worcestershire, after a fire broke out amid the third heatwave of the summer. Local residents were forced to evacuate their homes, while firefighters battled to get the flames under control. Earlier in the summer, multiple wildfires burned for days in the Scottish Highlands. Scotland's fire and rescue service said that firefighters worked 'tirelessly' to tackle the wildfires from Carrbridge in the Highlands to Dallas village in Moray. The National Fire Chiefs Council warned that wildfires have become increasingly common as the UK climate becomes more extreme, impacting all fire and rescue services across the UK. It added that many wildfires are caused by human activity, as it urged caution over lighting fires in the open.
Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Automotive
- Daily Mirror
Belvedere crash: Car ploughs into London home as firefighters cut men free
Firefighters were called to cut two men free from a car after it ploughed into a house in Greater London. Emergency services were called to Beckett Close in Belvedere at around 4am this morning following reports of a Chrysler 300C colliding with a home. The owner of the home is understood to have escaped without injury. A black Tesla model Y parked outside the home was spotted in birds-eye images of the scene with severe damage to it next to a chaotic scene in which another behicle can be seen badly damaged. Debris is also strewn around next to the home, with visible damage to the brickwork. A loud bang caused some local residents to think a gas explosion had occurred. The Mirror has approached the Metropolitan Police and London Fire Brigade for comment.
BBC News
4 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Bicester Motion: Funeral procession for firefighter Martyn Sadler
A funeral procession for one of the two firefighters killed in a blaze at a business park has been Martyn Sadler, 38, died alongside colleague Jenny Logan and father-of-two Dave Chester at Bicester Motion on 15 31 July a cortege will travel from Banbury Road, in Bicester, to the fire station on Queen's Avenue, where a minute silence will be held in his honour. In a social media post, Bicester Fire Station invited the community "to support and view Martyn's procession along this route". "If you wish to support from Queen's Avenue, we ask for you to stand on the opposite side of the road to our fire station," the post said."Your presence will mean so much to us and Martyn's family and friends."It added that the route would be lined with firefighters and emergency service personnel. Road closures will be in place from 09:45 BST to support the Sadler worked for Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service and was also part of the London Fire started his wholetime firefighter training with Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service and worked in Slough, Langley and Maidenhead before moving to the London Fire Commissioner Andy Roe said of Mr Sadler: "We have lost a well-respected and much-loved colleague who exemplified courage and selflessness in the service of others."His family described him as "born to be a firefighter", and "a loving husband, son, brother, uncle and all-round family member". Ms Logan, 30, was also honoured with a procession in Bicester on 14 June, when thousands turned up for her funeral for Mr Chester, 57, took place in Tackley, on 8 repaired heritage buildings at the former RAF base at the month police, fire and Health and Safety Executive investigation work at the scene concluded. You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
BBC News
6 days ago
- Climate
- BBC News
'Unsung heroes' saved homes from Dagenham grass fire
People would have probably lost their homes in Monday's grass fire in Dagenham, east London, were it not for the actions of maintenance workers, according to the council fire broke out behind Clemence Road, which backs on to Beam Parklands, at about 18:30 BST on Monday. The blaze, which covered about eight hectares (20 acres), was tackled by more than 120 and Dagenham Council leader Dominic Twomey said the fire would have spread to homes if maintenance workers - who he described as "unsung heroes" - had not cut fire breaks into the grass over recent saw four wildfires break out over a 24-hour period from Monday into Tuesday. 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 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."
