UK heatwave: Pubs tackle wildfires
The heatwave marked the UK’s hottest day on record, with fires in London so frequent that the London Fire Brigade declared a “major incident”.
The Newton Arms pub was forced to close due to nearby wildfires in Sprotbrough, Yorkshire yesterday (19 July). The site decided to shut for the afternoon in the interests of public safety.
On Facebook, the team posted an image of flames bordering on the pub’s children’s play area. The caption read: Too close for comfort…. Please stay safe everyone!”
Helping out
Furthermore, Aksular restaurant in Southgate, north London has been destroyed and a women taken to hospital after the building caught fire yesterday.
London Fire Brigade was called to the venue, in Green Lanes, at 9.22am, and by 8pm, they had managed to control the fire. At its peak, there were 70 firefighters and 10 fire engines tackling the fire, with crews coming from Southgate, Tottenham, Finchley and Hornsey.
Firefighters are still at the scene of the fire on Green Lanes in #Southgate and are likely to be there into the evening. Half of the roof remains alight https://t.co/PketvL4O1Rhttps://t.co/XD9V3sOicV
— London Fire Brigade (@LondonFire) July 19, 2022
Other pubs helped out with distressed residents in areas hit by wildfires. The Lennards Arms in Wennington, Essex was hosting evacuees and their pets after the village went up in flames.
The site’s owner Walter Martin, 61, told The Mail Online: “I got a phone call at about 12:50 and I saw a little smoke, I walked around and saw a small fire and then saw it just go up. I've never seen anything like it. It's awful. People are in shock. People are devastated.”
Catastrophic loss
The White Horse, Brancaster Staithe, Norfolk fed firemen who had been working to tackle fires in the village. An Instagram post read: “What we witnessed last night in our village was catastrophic, with houses lost, thankful that no one was hurt.
“We cannot be more prouder of all of the emergency services that attended – the coastguard for helping, the police for keeping everyone informed, the ambulance service for being there to assist.
“These amazing firemen, some who had been on the call for over 24 hours. Without these heroes it could have been even worse. They battled to keep our community safe, 42 degrees, heavy kit, putting themselves in danger, no questions asked.”
