One of Britain’s longest-running wildfires has finally been extinguished after blazing across almost 1,500 acres of precious moorland for two months.
Fire crews were first called to Tintwistle Moor, Derbyshire, on 24 June after the huge blaze broke out.
A major incident was declared on 12 July as flames ripped through 1,497 acres of woodland and moorland.
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Firefighters spent weeks battling the blaze before monitoring the final remaining sector to make sure it was completely out.
A stop message was finally issued on Monday (24 August), bringing the mammoth operation to an end.
Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service then formally stood down its operational response, as reported by Need To Know.
Area manager Nathan Stevens said: “The issuing of the stop message marks the end of a significant and complex incident that has required a sustained response over many weeks.
“This incident has demonstrated the incredible dedication of people right across Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service.
“While our firefighters worked tirelessly on the moor, colleagues in control and support teams played a vital role behind the scenes, helping to sustain the response while ensuring we continued to deliver services to our communities throughout the incident.
“I would like to extend my sincere thanks to everyone involved, including colleagues from across the service, partner agencies, other fire and rescue services, landowners, farmers, gamekeepers and local communities.
“The scale and duration of this wildfire presented significant challenges, and the response would not have been possible without the collective efforts of many organisations and individuals working together.”
The operation was one of the longest-running incidents in terms of operational deployment ever attended by Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service.
Work will now continue to recover equipment used during the mammoth response.
Responsibility for the site has been handed back to landowner United Utilities.
Fire chiefs will continue working with the company over the coming week, providing advice and support as recovery efforts continue across the moor.
The cause of the wildfire remains unknown.
Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service previously said that “fires like this are likely caused by human behaviour, whether accidental or deliberate”.
The service’s wildfire lead Mark King added: “Given the scale of the wildfire at Tintwistle Moor, we may never be able to establish exactly how the fire started.”
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