Fire crews fight huge blaze on moorland at Belmont (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Fire crews fight huge blaze on moorland at Belmont

7:00am Wednesday 17th March 2010 in

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FIREFIGHTERS were last night battling to control a fire on moorland in Belmont.

The Wilton Arms pub in Belmont Road shut down for the evening as a precaution after advice from fire officers.

Crews arrived at about 6.40pm with three appliances to deal with the fire on land behind the pub.

Smoke and flames could be seen for miles. It is not known what started the blaze, though neighbours said it was not unusual for controlled burning of heather and that could have spiralled out of control.

The Wilton Arms' duty manager, Nathan Barber, said: “We have been given advice from the fire service about safety and asked our customers to leave as a precaution.

"We have closed for the night.

“Our building has been unaffected, but the smoke from the fire can be seen from miles around."

One appliance from Darwen Fire Station, another from Bolton North and another from Farnworth attended the scene.

Crews at neighbouring stations were ordered to remain on standby in case the fire spread further.

The flames had a knock-on effect to traffic on Belmont Road, as motorists slowed to get a view of the plumes of smoke bellowing from the moorland.

Police blocked off part of Belmont Road near the pub at about 8pm to allow firefighters better access.

A Greater Manchester Fire Service spokesman said: “These kinds of fire are quite common around April or May when the ground is very dry.

“They are quite unusual for March, but we have had to deal with dozens of them in the last week.

“Some of them are cases of deliberate ignition where kids are going on to open land and starting fires now the nights are turning lighter.

“We have had no rain in the last couple of weeks, which makes the ground dry and ideal for spreading fire quickly.”