Police officers will now be patrolling the area
A huge inferno which came dangerously close to houses in the Rhondda was deliberate, the fire service has said.
The blaze was lit on a mountainside in Tonypandy on Saturday, with crews battling the fire for hours as they struggled against high winds.
Crews were called to the scene on the Penrhys mountain at 5.20pm where around 10 hectares, about the size of 10 rugby pitches, were "well alight".
A South Wales Fire and Rescue ( SWFRS ) spokeswoman said the fire was deliberate and police officers will be patrolling the area.
A message sent by crews at around 6.30pm said they were being hampered by high winds and the left flank of the fire was approaching houses.
The incident will now be passed to the fire crime department who will work with South Wales Police.
SWFRS said that the fire did not cause any damage to property.
The stop message was sent by crews at 8.17pm with the last crew leaving the scene at 8.46pm.
One passer-by claimed on Saturday that the blaze towered over the nearby Asda store.
“It’s on Penrhys mountain, but you can see it from behind Asda,” the onlooker said.
“It’s across a large area, I saw a helicopter flying over and there are a couple of fire engines there.
“It stretches across the whole mountain.”
“I would say it is about twice the size of Asda, it’s massive. There is a lot of smoke and it seems to be spreading quite a lot with the wind,” the witness said.
“It’s very close to houses too. It’s blowing toward mine. I’m really worried.”
Four hose reel jets and beaters were used at the scene, which was attended by crews from Ferndale, Tonypandy and Pontypridd .
* One fire crew was also called to a grass fire in Bargoed on Sunday at 9.28am, with one crew in attendance.
No comments:
Post a Comment