Fire Crews Leave Woodpile Fire Near Brentwood

21 October 2014, 07:41 | Updated: 21 October 2014, 07:43

Courtesy of Essex County Fire and Rescue Service

Fire crews have finally left the site of a woodpile fire near Brentwood, nine weeks after it first started.

5,000 tonnes of wood has been burning since 18 August on Thoby Lane in Mountnessing but firefighters have not been able to put it out because of concerns for the environment.

Acting Chief Fire Officer Adam Eckley said: "This has been a significant incident to deal with, using considerable resources and presenting a number of challenges over the weeks on site.

"Our response has involved a huge effort from our people right across the Service. There is hardly a firefighter or officer in Essex who hasn't had some involvement in this incident but crews have received a lot of support to enable them to carry out their work at the scene.

"Our Stores team has played a vital role making sure crews had everything they needed including food, water and replacement firefighting equipment. Our Fleet team has had to maintain appliances at the scene, Water section has been heavily involved, particularly in the early days when water supply presented a significant issue.

"Control operators have done a fantastic job in dealing both with the initial incident and later planning reliefs to make sure ECFRS was able to carry on with our business as usual while we maintained a presence here.

"Throughout this incident we have worked closely with our partners at Brentwood Borough Council and the Environment Agency to make sure that the fire had the minimum impact on the local area and those living nearby and the environment. The decision taken early on not to use large amounts of water on this fire have drastically reduced the environmental impact it has had.

"We are now entering the final stages though our work at the site hasn't finished entirely. But with the progress over the weekend, the community can be reassured that we are no longer required to maintain a constant presence here."

The service say it has committed more than 1,500 firefighter hours to the site.