Firefighters tackle Kettering Valley Walk field fire close to houses and Green Patch
Firefighters have extinguished blaze in Kettering’s Valley Walk, in an area close to houses and The Green Patch today (Thursday, August 13).
Neighbours raised the alarm just after 3.15pm as a line of flame engulfed the tinder-dry meadow.
Four crews attended the incident using hoses and beaters to prevent the blaze spreading to trees in the area.
A spokesman for Northants Fire and Rescue Service said: “Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service was called to a field fire at Valley Walk, Kettering this afternoon (August 13).
“Four crews attended shortly after 3.15pm and firefighters worked quickly to both extinguish the fire and stop its spread.
“After dampening down any remaining hotspots, crews left the scene just after 4.45pm and returned to their stations.”
Residents praised the firefighters’ quick response to the incident.
One witness had been cooking and thought the smell of smoke could be from her kitchen, but quickly realised the ‘rubbery smell’ was coming from outside.
She said: “I’ve never been so scared. I could smell burning. I thought it might be a spatula as I was cooking. I went into the back garden and thought someone was having a bonfire. When I looked out the front all I could see was smoke.
"Thank goodness it didn’t get to the trees.”
People have been reminded by the fire service to take care in the parched conditions.
The spokesman for Northants Fire and Rescue added: “With the continuing hot weather, we remind the public to be careful when disposing of anything that could cause a spark that could lead to a fire.”