Warning as 'significant' grass blaze breaks out

Dozens of firefighters are tackling a "significant" grassland blaze that caused several people to flee their homes earlier.

Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service said it received multiple calls reporting the grass fire at about 14:50 BST in Mincinglake Valley Park in Exeter, Devon.

Firefighters are still tackling the flames, but a fire service spokesperson has said that it is safe for anyone who had left a property in the area to return.

They said: "The fire is now contained within the area of Mincinglake Valley, so please continue to avoid the affected area."

A spokesperson for Devon Wildlife Trust, which manages Mincinglake Valley Park, described the fire as "significant" and said staff are on-site assisting emergency services.

The fire affected an area of about 50 acres (20.23 hectares) and 20 fire engines attended the scene, as well as a number of specialist vehicles at its "peak".

A fire service spokesperson said the blaze was ongoing for "some time" and the scene had been "sectorised" as part of efforts to prevent it from spreading further.

Dan Searle, the fire service's manager, said the blaze was declared a "major incident" at its peak, but this has now been stood down.

Searle said that crews were confident the fire was now contained, but crews remained at the scene to dampen down any hotspots.

"We have scaled back to six appliances and an incident commander, and off-road vehicles to make sure the area is as safe as possible," he said.

He said it was a "challenging incident" for crews due to there being interfacing properties and road infrastructure in the valley.

"Emergency services, both whole time and on-call, worked incredibly hard in really challenging, arduous conditions to extinguish the fire.

"I'm incredibly grateful to my colleagues for their efforts," he said.

He added the fire service was experiencing a "massive volume" of calls and in the coming days, the wildfire index was "extremely high".

"We're urging people to be really vigilant and careful and avoid things that will ultimately lead to potential fires both in city areas, which is something we're seeing more and more of, and on our moors and commons."

Devon and Cornwall Police said officers were also at the scene and warned members of the public to "avoid the area".

Local residents were also told to keep windows and doors closed.

A Devon Wildlife Trust spokesperson said their immediate priority is the safety of people and supporting the official response.

"We ask that people to avoid the area until further notice.

"We understand that people will be concerned about the impact of this incident on this much-loved urban green space.

"It is too early to assess those impacts, but we will do so when the situation is made safe," they added.

Crews also dealt with a conifer trees fire in Cranbrook after receiving multiple calls at about 13:30.

A spokesperson confirmed the fire had been extinguished and there was damage to a 50m (164ft) line of trees and a 10m sq (110ft sq) area of grass.

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