RESIDENTS in Dunster were told to keep their windows shut whilst firefighters tackled a large blaze in Nutcombe Bottom.

Three crews were called to reports of a fire involving open ground and woodland at 7.03pm on Saturday night (March 28).

Somerset County Gazette:

Somerset County Gazette:

 

The firefighters were faced with an intense fire burning in a forestry plantation and scrubland on a steep hillside which was being fanned by the strong high winds.

Access to the fire was almost impossible for crews to tackle from the forestry tracks due to thick undergrowth under the trees and the speed of the wind, although several attempts were made.

Chris Jones, Station Commander at Minehead Fire Station was one of those called to deal with the fire.

He said: “It’s quite unusual to get fires in the plantations like that. The flames move quicker than you can.

“Trying to get it under control in those winds and with the gradient of the hill was just not happening. “It’s too dangerous to go in and tackle it, so you have to stand on the outskirts and hope you can control it when it comes closer.

“It’s a completely different ball game to a house fire.”

A spokesperson for Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service said that the incident was “scaled down” at 11pm on Saturday night, but that the crews remained on site until they were relieved by additional crews from Minehead and Porlock at daylight.

Somerset County Gazette:

Somerset County Gazette:

People in the area were advised to keep their windows closed due to smoke and the fire being fanned by strong winds.

After the fire had subsided, small pockets of scrub and roots remained smouldering on the steep slopes in the centre of the fire-ground “which is normal under these conditions”.

“As much as we don’t like rain,” Minehead fire crews said in a statement published on Facebook shortly after the fire had subsided, “right now it can rain as it likes for the next few hours over Black Hill.”

There were no casualties as a result of the fire and the cause is yet unknown.

Did you see what happened? Were you affected by the smoke? Let us know. Email hollie.borland@nqsw.co.uk