FIRE chiefs have confirmed the huge blaze at Lickey Hills is effectively now out but firefighters are expected to remain at the scene for another 24 hours.
Crews are on site damping down after battling the flames throughout the night following the blaze which broke out at the beauty spot near Bromsgrove yesterday afternoon (Monday July 18) just after 1pm.
Images from the scene posted on Twitter by crews from Redditch and Leominster show a post-apocalyptic looking smouldering landscape and firefighters from Redditch said it had been "a long night for the on-call at the Lickey Hills".
Fifteen people had to be evacuated from their homes in Eachway Lane yesterday evening as firefighters battled tough conditions to try to stop the spread of the fire which was fanned by a southerly wind. But they were able to return to their properties by around 8pm.
A spokesperson for Bromsgrove District Council said: "All those evacuated were able to make their own arrangements to stay elsewhere. We had rest centre plans in place but did not need to activate them.”
The fire initially covered around around 400 square metres but spread to around 50,000 sq m, with 12 crews from Hereford and Worcester, West Midlands and Shropshire Fire and Rescue Services drafted in to help put out the flames.
The fire service confirmed this morning, however, that the worst was over.
A spokesperson for Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service said: "The situation is that the fire is effectively now out but a number of crews remain in place to damp it down.
"Firefighters are likely to be on scene for up to another 24 hours, and this remains a live operation."
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