AN investigation into a large waste fire on a fly-tipping and arson hotspot is continuing.

The Environment Agency (EA) is looking into the cause of a large fire which took place at Hubbs House Farm, in Colne, on Monday.

Several firefighters were called the the blaze in Southfield Lane, which was roughly 20 metres by 20 metres in size.

Residents living near to the fire were warned to keep windows and doors closed if possible.

A police spokesman said although the fire was possibly being treated as suspicious, no arrests have been made in relation to the fire.

An EA spokesman confirmed its officers were called to the scene to access the environmental damage from the blaze.

The spokesman said: “Following a waste fire at Hubbs House Farm in Colne on Monday, the Environment Agency deployed environment officers to the scene to assess environmental impacts, assist partner agencies and gather evidence.

“This site is part of an ongoing investigation and we encourage everyone, if they see waste crime anywhere, to report it by calling our incident hotline on 0800 80 70 60 or anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”

The site, which a court heard last year was part-owned and controlled by farmer John Leslie Allison, has been a waste-plagued problem for years.

On a number of occasions in recent years Mr Allison had been ordered to clear all controlled waste from the land.

In April, the 73-year-old, of Southfield Lane, Colne, was jailed at Preston Crown Court for six months after failing to clean up the waste by a June 2018 deadline.

Inspections in July and September last year by EA officers found Mr Allison had failed to take any or adequate steps to remove waste from the field, therefore breaching a remediation order made in January 2018.