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<\/p>\nNottinghamshire Police has launched an arson investigation into a series of fires officers believe were started by a group riding e-motorbikes.<\/p>\n
Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service said there had been a “stark rise” in the number of wildfires in the Mansfield area.<\/p>\n
Sgt Lee Walker, of the Mansfield neighbourhood policing team, said: “It is believed some of the fires have been deliberately lit by a group riding e-motorbikes around the area and investigations are ongoing.”<\/p>\n
Red and amber heat weather warnings have been issued for the East Midlands during the summer, with a top recorded temperature of 36.9C (98F) in Nottinghamshire.<\/p>\n
Walker added: “We are working alongside our fire service colleagues following a number of wildfires in the Mansfield area over recent days.<\/p>\n
“Any arson attack is incredibly reckless, and the recent dry weather has made this behaviour even more dangerous for the whole community.”<\/p>\n
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Leigh Holmes is a group manager at Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service [BBC]<\/p>\n
About nine acres (3.6 hectares) of land were affected by a wildfire at Strawberry Hill heath in Mansfield earlier in August. However, the cause of the blaze, which took several days to bring under control, could not be determined.<\/p>\n
Police have not stated where the suspected arson incidents in Mansfield were located, but fire service group manager Leigh Holmes said: “It’s one significant incident after another and we haven’t had chance yet to really investigate the root cause any further.<\/p>\n
“If arson is suspected, which at some of the incidents it is, we do request the police are informed.”<\/p>\n
Holmes added that the number of outdoor fires this year had risen by nearly half compared to last year.<\/p>\n
He said there have been more than 900 fires across the county since 1 July, 27 of which were wildfires.<\/p>\n
“It’s been a very busy summer,” he said.<\/p>\n
“We had one at Strawberry Hill heath near Mansfield, and that went on for a number of days.<\/p>\n
“We were also firefighting in a number of fields at Rise Park.<\/p>\n
“We’ve also had a significant fire in the Bestwood area and at some points we used people’s gardens to firefight because it was so close to people’s properties.”<\/p>\n
He said firefighters had also supported colleagues in Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire and Cambridgeshire.<\/p>\n
Vince Lane, a crew manager at the fire service, said the service first looked into specialist wildlife capability equipment following the hot summer of 2022.<\/p>\n
The vehicles are smaller than normal fire engines, so they can access woodland and heathland areas.<\/p>\n
The three vehicles in the service have been used 140 times since June this year.<\/p>\n
Nottinghamshire Police has urged anyone with information into the fires in Mansfield to come forward with information.<\/p>\n
Listen to BBC Radio Nottingham on Sounds<\/a> and follow BBC Nottingham on Facebook<\/a>, on X<\/a>, or on Instagram<\/a>. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk<\/a> or via WhatsApp<\/a> on 0808 100 2210.<\/p>\n More on this story