Firefighters tackle multiple heathland blazes

More than 60 firefighters have been working to extinguish multiple blazes on heathland in Dorset.

Crews from Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service were called to the fires at Sandford Heath and Great Ovens Hill, near Wareham, on Saturday evening.

It said the first call had been received at about 18:50 GMT, after an area roughly 230ft by 98ft (70m by 30m) was found ablaze at Sandford Heath, with multiple fires discovered soon after on the nearby Great Ovens Hill.

Firefighters tackled the blazes throughout the evening and extinguished the fires by 01:00 on Sunday morning, the service said.

Multiple vehicles and water carriers were mobilised to tackle the blazes - including the largest on Great Ovens Hill, which measured about 980ft by 650ft (300m by 200m).

Although firefighting concluded in the early hours of Sunday morning, the service said crews would be returning to check for hotspots.

Station manager Tim Kench said there were "multiple areas of heathland that were well alight".

"It was very arduous conditions... It was very difficult to get access due to the terrain.

"This is not the type of fire we would expect to see this time of year.

"The fire is under investigation. We are working with police."