A FIRE which badly damaged an ancient woodland on the Helford was caused by a BBQ not put out properly by the user.

Firefighters from Falmouth spent three days using the Fire Boat and a specialist hose to drench the ground to put out the fire at Merthen Wood, Groyne Point, Helford River.

 

The fire started on Sunday afternoon in the ancient Sessile Oak along the Helford Passage, an important wildlife habitat.

Difficulty in access meant that the firefighters had to use the fireboat to tackle the flames.

Posting a video of the incident on Facebook, Falmouth Fire Station warned people to be careful when using a BBQ and put it out properly:  "This is specialist hose we use to drench the ground in a wild fire to extinguish the fire and prevent it spreading through the roots and relighting!

"This wild fire is the result of a BBQ that was left without being properly extinguished. We’ve spent three days tackling the fire on the river Helford and we could only access it via our FireBoat.

"We want you to enjoy this weather but please be careful when using your BBQ and ensure they are properly extinguished before disposing of them."

Firefighters across the county have been tackling fires in the open for days now, including a huge wood fire in Malpas, Truro at the weekend which is still smouldering

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Crews from Penzance, St Ives, Helston, Mullion, Falmouth, Tolvaddon, Perranporth, Truro, St Austell, and Launceston have been involved in tackling fires in other locations.

Falmouth Packet:

Cornwall Fire Service issued a warning to members of the public saying: "Members of the public are requested to be vigilant and be safety conscious when having barbecues or controlled burning.

Falmouth Packet:

"Always ensure that you have a means of quickly extinguishing anything that gets out of hand and remember to dispose of portable barbecues safely and ensure that they are completely cold and place in a safe position."