North Wales Fire And Rescue Service Encourage Farmers And Landowners To ‘Call Before You Burn’

Many farmers will be undertaking controlled burning of heather, grass, bracken and gorse on their land as the season comes to an end on the 31st of March in upland areas and tomorrow (15th of March) elsewhere. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

North Wales Fire and Rescue Service encourage farmers and landowners to follow the Heather and Grass Burning Code and to notify the fire and rescue service on 01931 522 006 of where and when burning will take place. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Staff have been undergoing visits to livestock markets to promote the ‘call before you burn’ campaign to ensure landowners take on board basic safety procedures as well as get in touch before conducting their burn. Today staff visited the livestock market at Ruthin to speak with farmers. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Kevin Jones, Community Safety Manager for Conwy and Denbighshire, who attended the market in Ruthin, said: “Every year we are called to countless false alarms and controlled burns which have spread. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“By calling us and letting us know when and where your controlled burning is to take place it will help us avoid false alarms and crews being sent out unnecessarily as well as ensuring we are ready to respond in the event of a burn getting out of control. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“When the weather is dry it is easy for fires to spread. These fires are often in areas where access is extremely difficult and water supply is limited. This can place tremendous pressure on resources should the fire get out of control. These fires can put homes, livestock and the lives of crews and residents at risk as firefighters are kept from attending genuine emergencies” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​