A MOORLAND fire which ravaged the moors above Darwen for more than a day could have been an deliberate arson attack.

The original fire started at Whitehall Farm, Whitehall Road, Darwen, at 4.50pm on Friday, but spread overnight to the Turton side of the moors. It took firefighters until Saturday night to completely extinguish it.

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A total of 12 fire engines from stations across Lancashire and Greater Manchester have attended the blaze, which was battled by 60 firefighters at its height. I and it is believed it will end up costing the service more than over £100,000.

At one point, firefighters were battling five separate fires over five acres of moorland.

Because of safety fears over fading light, crews went in to ‘defence mode’ on Friday night and looked to contain the fire, before going back in to ‘attack mode’ on Saturday morning. A fire service spokesman said priority was given to protecting four farm properties overnight.

Support was provided by Bolton Mountain Rescue Team, who took firefighters to remote locations in their 4x4 vehicles and also used their local knowledge to highlight areas particularly susceptible to fires.

Greater Manchester Fire Service’s drone was also used to give crews an accurate indication of where the different fires were located.

Bay Search and Rescue also provided vehicle support, and the Salvation Army were on scene ensuring firefighters stayed hydrated.

Paramedics were also on the moorlands but there are no reports of injury to any human or animal. No properties were damaged.

The cause of the fire is under investigation and a fire service incident intelligence officer was on scene on Saturday.

A fire service spokesman said the fire would have been worse if it had not been for the frost on Saturday morning.

The alert was raised by a pilot flying over the moors who spotted the fire in the Winter Hill area at 4.50pm on Friday.

On Friday night, homeowners were warned to keep their windows closed around Belmont and Rivington, due to smoke to prevent their properties being affected by smoke.

Anyone who saw anything suspicious in the area is asked to call police on 101.