Large Fire At Wigsley Old Airfield

Firefighters are currently in attendance at a large fire at Wigsley Old Airfield, Wigsley, following a call at 12:32 this morning.

Approximately 12,000 tonnes of hay bales were on fire and standing corn was well alight. 

At the height of this incident we had 10 fire engines in attendance, as well as the Water Bowser, the Command Support Unit and multiple rural firefighting vehicles. 

Crews worked extremely hard throughout the night to get this fire under control and to stop it spreading further.

This morning (Sunday 13 July) we reduced our attendance to three fire engines - firefighters on scene will be creating fire breaks and working to extinguish the fire.

Station Manager Jack Makepeace, who was Officer In Charge (OIC) at this incident, said: "It's looking like we are going to remain on scene for the coming days, if not longer, whilst we work to fully extinguish the fire and determine a cause. 

"I would like to thank both the staff on the fire ground and those working hard in our Joint Fire Control Room for the work they have done throughout the night, especially in the hot conditions. 

"We would like to remind people to avoid the area where possible. If you can still see or smell smoke in your local area, then we advise keeping doors and windows closed."