Firefighters tackle grass blazes

Officers from Hatfield Fire Station were called out to four separate incidents over a five-hour period last Thursday. The first call-out came just after 12.30pm when crews attended a tree fire at Chequersfield, Welwyn Garden City.

An hour later, officers were called out to Great Braitch Lane, Hatfield, after passers-by reported a hedgerow on fire. It took firefighters more than an hour to damp down the blaze, which destroyed about 20 metres of the hedge.

Later that day at 4.20pm crews attended a grass fire on derelict land in Golden Dell, Welwyn Garden City. Residents living close by used hosepipes to control the small blaze before officers arrived.

The final call-out was at Green Lanes, Hatfield, just after 5.30pm. A pile of organic waste on council-owned allotments was on fire with smoke from the blaze pouring out on to the A1M motorway nearby.

Officers had to warn the motorway's control centre about the potential risk to motorists as the smoke inhibited driving conditions.

It is not known if any of the fires were started deliberately or were down to the hot temperatures that day.

Last Thursday was one of the hottest days of the year, with temperatures reaching about 30c, but officers have also reported an increase in the number of fires started deliberately by bored teenagers during the summer break.

Hatfield sub-officer Steve Duncan said: "It is impossible to tell the origin of these fires, but we seem to get a lot more incidents of trees and grassy ares being deliberately set on fire over the summer months.

"It is a waste of our time and potentially very dangerous.

"The allotment fire was quite serious because of the amount of smoke it produced, which made driving conditions hazardous."

Hertfordshire's community safety manager, John Parker, said dry, grassy areas were particularly vulnerable to fires at this time of year. He said it was possible some of the fires could have started from a dropped cigarette end.