Households evacuated after Stourbridge wildfires begin to return home
Residents evacuated after a wildfire in Stourbridge have started returning to their homes as firefighters continue tackling ongoing blazes across the UK.
Dudley Borough Council said in an update on Sunday that eight families whose houses have been destroyed by the fires have been able to view their properties.
Some 13 households whose properties were partially damaged in the blazes have been able to return, chief executive Balvinder Heran said in a residents’ briefing.
West Midlands Fire Service said it has been able to “significantly lift” cordons in the area as a further 85 evacuated households whose properties were unaffected returned to their homes.
In the update, Ms Heran asked locals not to “speculate” about the cause of the blaze while investigations continue.
Elsewhere, firefighters in South Wales are continuing to battle 14 wildfires in the region as emergency services warn that risk remains high for next week.
South Wales Fire and Rescue Service said on Sunday it was responding to “significant wildfire activity” with the support of other services from across the UK and military personnel.
Deputy chief fire officer Adam Openshaw said: “I am incredibly proud of everyone involved in the response to this major incident.
“From our outstanding operational crews and officers on the front line, to our amazing fire control teams, and corporate colleagues.
“The courage, resilience, teamwork, and dedication being demonstrated across the service at the moment is truly exceptional.”
Around 200 military personnel – from the Queen’s Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment, supported by the 22 Engineer Regiment – were deployed to the region on Saturday to provide logistical support and help free firefighters to focus on frontline firefighting.
Crews from London, Greater Manchester, Cumbria and Bedfordshire have also been deployed in the region to help.
A 50-year-old man has been charged with arson after several small fires were set in Hackney, east London.
Police and the London Fire Brigade were called to multiple reports of a man starting fires in London Fields, near Lansdowne Drive, Hackney, just after 5am on Saturday.
Later on Saturday, Isaac Shozi, of Bodney Road, Hackney, was charged with arson and remanded in custody to appear at Barkingside Magistrates’ Court on Monday.
On Friday evening, millions of people in England and Wales received an alert on their mobile devices warning them of a “very high risk of wildfires nationally”.
Several fire services have since uploaded statements asking members of the public to only call 999 to report a genuine emergency.
Wildfires across the West Midlands have led to communities “rallying together” to raise funds for families affected.
More than £125,000 has been raised in GoFundMe appeals, with the money being donated to those affected by major blazes in Stourbridge, Birmingham, Pershore and Stoke-on-Trent.
Temperatures are set to cool in the coming days with rain expected in some areas.
In an afternoon weather update, Met Office meteorologist Tom Morgan said: “There is at least some good news for the drought-affected parts of England and Wales through the week ahead.
“There’s some welcome rain on the way for many of us.”
The heaviest rain on Sunday has affected parts of Northern Ireland and Scotland, Mr Morgan said, and the weather has become more showery as it pushes towards northern England.
It comes after a week of scorching temperatures during which the hottest day of the year was recorded on Thursday when temperatures reached 38.1C in Kew Gardens, London.
Published: by Radio NewsHub