Nerves fraying as fires lit on Petersfield Heath and nature reserve

As parts of The Highlands and Isle of Wight burn as a relentless dry spell continues, a plea has been made to kids, campers and countryside users after fires were lit in two beauty spots in the Petersfield area.

Town ranger, Jacob Gibson, has once more urged people not to light fires on Petersfield Heath as firefighters prevented a minor blaze from spreading last Tuesday morning.

The finger has been pointed at children as a bike ramp, litter and den were found near the remnants of a fire pit close to the cricket ground.

It was the third incident this year where an illegal fire or barbecue had been lit on the heath, with Mr Gibson asking parents to let their children know of the current dangers.

He said: “I think you’ve got to use that line, do you know where your kids are and what they’re doing?

“Parents should talk about the risk because there’s a chance the kids might not have known the consequences of what they were doing.

“If it had been another hour it could have spread into the next field. It was lucky it was caught when it was.”

A similar incident took place the same morning as a wild camper lit a log fire near Cobbetts View, in the Ashford Hangers National Nature Reserve, the previous night.

Former Post reporter Anne England raised the alarm around 7am as the ashes were still warm when she came across the remnants, with firefighters having to travel on foot to the remote site.

She said: “Someone had wild camped the night before and there was a sizeable log fire – I won’t repeat the language I uttered on the spot.

“It’s absolutely bone dry there and there are crops nearby, it didn’t bear thinking about what could happen.”

On-call firefighters from Horndean attended but struggled to get their vehicle down Cockshott Lane, so walked around three quarters of a mile on foot.

“The fire was extinguished using buckets of water and knapsack pumps, before firefighters left the scene at 9.30am,” said a spokesperson.

Anne was thanked for her actions as the fire was still smouldering when firefighters arrived on Wheatham Hill.

“It can’t have been easy for them walking all that way with heavy knapsacks,” said Anne, Solent chair of the NUJ.

“A couple of them were retained and had other jobs. They went to another fire straight afterwards and were clear it wasn’t a waste of time.”

Petersfield Town Council has launched a Heath Fire Watch scheme with the tagline ‘look out, report, protect’. They’re looking for volunteers to act as the council’s “extra eyes” by spotting risks early, reporting concerns and doing their bit to keep people safe.

Mr Jacob said: “Anyone who is able to walk around and look out for us when we’re not around can join.

“We’re not asking people to challenge anyone, just report it to us.”

For more details call PTC on 01730 264182.