Firefighters battle for three hours to stop wood blaze

A FIRE in Mapledurham has destroyed 1,500 sq m of woodland.

An area of Chazey Wood on the Mapledurham estate near Pond Lane caught alight on Thursday last week.

The Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service was alerted to the fire at 2.38pm and crews were dispatched to the site from Caversham Road and Whitley Wood fire stations. The crews were joined by a 4×4 vehicle from Mortimer fire station and the Zetros water carrier from Bracknell fire station.

Upon arrival, crews found bracken on fire in the area. Firefighters used beaters, hose reels and the Zetros to put out the fire. They were on scene for about two hours and 52 minutes.

One crew from Caversham Road fire station later returned to the area for a reinspection, where they were on the scene for about 58 minutes.

The fire service said that no cause had yet been identified. A spokeswoman for the estate said: “It’s incredibly sad that a large area of woodland has been burnt.

“Obviously, we are not blaming anyone but it’s been so dry we would like to ask the public wherever they are walking to please be careful with disposing of cigarettes and barbecues. Please be careful and please be aware.”