In contrast to the images of planes dropping water on vast wildfires in California or Spain, British firefighters are often trying to contain blazes with little more than hand tools.<\/p>\n
And there\u2019s no fire without smoke. Inside homes, crews wear breathing apparatus; on the moors, that\u2019s not an option. The compressed-air cylinders only last half an hour and carrying them across miles of rough terrain isn\u2019t feasible. Instead, firefighters rely on lighter dust masks that filter only some particles.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIdeally, you don\u2019t want to be working in the smoke, but inevitably there are always changes in wind movement,\u201d says Swallow.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u201cYou usually end up in it at some point. You just can\u2019t have the same level of respiratory protection that you could have at a building.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn a building fire, it doesn\u2019t generally spread from building to building. In a wildfire, the fire obviously can just keep growing and growing and spreading out. That then starts to stretch resources. It\u2019s a completely different thought process and mindset.\u201d<\/p>\n
Read more:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2018We won\u2019t have enough resources in place\u2019<\/p>\n The NFCC has rolled out a basic wildfire training package to fire services, but crews remain primarily trained for building fires. Specialist resources are patchy. Swallow points out that wildfire can be \u201cjust classed as business as usual\u201d and funded out of existing budgets. London, scarred by its wildfire outbreak in 2022, announced in August a \u00a340 million investment from the mayor\u2019s office in equipment and training. Elsewhere, the picture is mixed.<\/p>\n Fire and rescue services in England responded to 600,185 incidents in total last year \u2013 an increase of 100,000 compared to a decade ago. Yet over the same period, firefighter numbers have fallen by 25%, the equivalent of 11,000 full-time posts.<\/p>\n Last month more than 100 firefighters tackled a blaze at Holt Heath near Wimborne, Dorset; dozens were called on when fire spread on Arthur\u2019s Seat in Edinburgh. Each new fire adds to the growing strain on already stretched crews.<\/p>\n Advertising helps fund Big Issue\u2019s mission to end poverty<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s going to have to be some very difficult decisions made by commanders on the ground about losing property,\u201d Swallow warns. \u201cWe won\u2019t have enough resources in place in the early stages of an incident to protect all the properties we want to protect, because the fire is moving so fast.\u201d In 2022, dozens of homes in London and beyond were lost this way.<\/p>\n That strain is already visible on the ground. Last month, on 27 August, North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service requested additional support through the National Resilience Fire Control to tackle the Langdale Moor blaze. Ten fire appliances were dispatched from across the country, including crews from the London Fire Brigade. Late last month LFB deployed 27 firefighters and five officers with five appliances and a specialist wildfire vehicle \u2013 travelling more than 200 miles to reinforce the operation. The long-distance mobilisation highlights how dependent regional services can be on outside support when major wildfires break out.<\/p>\n \u2018Vegetation is much more flammable than in the past\u2019<\/p>\n Professor Stefan Doerr, who leads the Centre for Wildfire Research at Swansea University, has studied fires from Portugal to Canada.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cUrban firefighting is absolutely outstanding in the UK,\u201d he says. \u201cBut there is in places a lack of knowledge how to deal with wildfires \u2013 and a lack of equipment as well, because the urban firefighting equipment differs very dramatically from wildland firefighting.\u201d<\/p>\n Doerr explains that the British landscape is becoming more flammable for a combination of factors. \u201cWe have seen quite severe, extended droughts in recent years. But another very important aspect is that we\u2019ve seen our cultural landscape changing \u2013 a reduction in management and in grazing across many areas, and that means we now have vegetation in the landscape that is much more flammable than it would have been in the past. Especially heather and gorse. They don\u2019t even need to be particularly dry to burn,\u201d Doerr notes.<\/p>\n Climate change means winters are warmer and wetter, encouraging vegetation growth. Summers are hotter and drier, leaving more fuel ready to burn. Managing that fuel load is fraught with politics. Controlled burns were once a common way to reduce heather and scrub, but government restrictions now limit their use, citing damage to carbon stores.<\/p>\n Advertising helps fund Big Issue\u2019s mission to end poverty<\/p>\n Because beneath the vegetation lies another layer of risk: peat. Britain holds more blanket bog than almost anywhere else in the world, storing vast amounts of carbon in its soil. \u201cIf the fires burn into peat, it\u2019s a big problem,\u201d Doerr warns.\u00a0<\/p>\n Unlike grass or heather, which can regrow within years, peat can take centuries to recover, and it\u2019s also much harder to extinguish if on fire. Fires on peatlands, which are carbon-rich, can almost double fire-driven carbon emissions: the carbon released into the atmosphere can undo years of emissions cuts in a single season.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2018Smoke from rural fires often goes undetected\u2019<\/p>\n When vegetation burns, the smoke carries dangerous particulate matter (PM) into the air \u2013 dust, ash and soot that can travel for miles and harm human health. Because these particles are so small, some less than 2.5 micrometres across (PM2.5), they can be inhaled deep into the lungs and enter the bloodstream, lodging in the heart, brain and other organs. Long-term exposure is linked to asthma, heart disease and premature death. Children, the elderly and people with respiratory problems are most at risk.<\/p>\n Dr Maria Val Martin, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Sheffield, has devoted her career to the study of how fires change the air that we breathe.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a combination of climate change, land management, and human activity,\u201d she says of the UK\u2019s wildfire increase. \u201cMost UK wildfires are still started by people.\u201d<\/p>\n Her work tracks how wildfire smoke travels and the damage it does. \u201cEven relatively small fires can cause dangerous spikes in PM2.5,\u201d she tells Big Issue.\u00a0<\/p>\n Advertising helps fund Big Issue\u2019s mission to end poverty<\/p>\n On 9 October 2023, a controlled burn in the Peak District led to PM2.5 levels in Sheffield rising to nearly five times the World Health Organisation limit, despite the fire being more than 15 miles away.<\/p>\n UK law currently requires average PM2.5 concentrations to stay below 20 micrograms per cubic metre. New targets mean England must cut that to 10 micrograms by 2040 and reduce population exposure by 35% compared to 2018 levels.<\/p>\n \u201cThe problem is that we\u2019re not monitoring these events properly,\u201d Martin adds. \u201cMost air-quality data in the UK comes from urban sites, meaning smoke from rural fires often goes undetected.\u201d<\/p>\n Without accurate monitoring, she warns, the health consequences of wildfire smoke risk remaining invisible until it is too late.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n The national picture<\/p>\n The threat of wildfires is not consistent across Britain. \u201cIf you live in the southeast, your peak fire season is actually the summer,\u201d Professor Doerr says. \u201cIf you go to Scotland, almost all the fires are in open land, and they tend to be heathland-dominated. If you go to Wales, the fires are heathland and grassland dominated, and the main fire season is April.\u00a0<\/p>\n The same applies to Scotland, unless we have a very dry summer like we\u2019ve seen this year.\u201d Each nation faces a different problem, he argues, and \u201cwe need to deal with the landscape in different ways.\u201d<\/p>\n Advertising helps fund Big Issue\u2019s mission to end poverty<\/p>\n While the landscapes vary, the ignition sources are similar. Almost every UK wildfire is caused by people. \u201cIn the past, wildfires around the world were largely caused by lightning strikes,\u201d Doerr explains. \u201cBut generally speaking, more than 99% of UK wildfires are caused by human ignitions, either intentional or unintentional.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n That includes arson, sparks from machinery, railway lines, barbecues and even controlled burns that get out of hand.<\/p>\n The National Farmers\u2019 Union (NFU), which represents more than 46,000 farming businesses in England and Wales, says prevention must involve everyone. Vice-president Rachel Hallos urged the public to be \u201cfire-aware\u201d when using shared countryside, adding: \u201cProtecting our farmland means protecting our food, our environment and our rural communities.\u201d<\/p>\n When Langdale Moor was set ablaze this August, it wasn\u2019t just fire crews on the scene. Upland farmers rushed in with water bowsers and tractors. Tom Hind, chief executive of the North York Moors National Park Authority, described the support as \u201cremarkable,\u201d noting that some farmers had travelled from far beyond the immediate area to offer equipment, grazing and stabling.<\/p>\n But the NFU warns farmers cannot face the risk by themselves. \u201cAs farmers, we are doing what we can, but this isn\u2019t an issue we can tackle alone,\u201d Hallos said. \u201cIt\u2019s vital that government, fire services and local authorities work with us on prevention, education and response.\u201d<\/p>\n A less flammable future?<\/p>\n So what does the future look like for Britain in the coming years?<\/p>\n Advertising helps fund Big Issue\u2019s mission to end poverty<\/p>\n Doerr cautions against assuming the danger has peaked. \u201cWe\u2019ll probably see a few wet years where nobody talks about fire,\u201d he says. \u201cThen we\u2019ll get another very dry spring and summer, with even higher temperatures, and the situation will be worse than this year.\u201d<\/p>\n That uncertainty makes preparation difficult. But some solutions are already on the table. In London, the fire brigade is urging councils and landowners to establish natural fire breaks (strips of less flammable land between housing estates and grassland) to slow the spread of grass fires. In Scotland, Moray Council, hit by its worst ever wildfire this year, has passed a motion calling for urgent national action, including plans for a multi-agency wildfire summit in spring 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n Meanwhile the NFCC warns that Britain needs more coordinated planning, clearer incident definitions, and stronger alliances across government departments and emergency services to reduce wildfire risk.<\/p>\n Scientists point to the land itself. Proactive management, whether through controlled burns, cutting fire breaks or rewetting degraded peat bogs, could make Britain\u2019s landscapes more resilient. But each measure comes with political and financial trade-offs: carbon concerns limit burning on peatlands, while rewilding and restoration schemes require significant investment.<\/p>\n What remains in question is whether the UK\u2019s fire services, land managers and policymakers can move quickly enough. Britain may not yet face the vast infernos of Portugal and California. But in a warming world, every nation has its breaking point \u2013 and this summer\u2019s record blazes suggest the UK is edging closer to its own.<\/p>\n Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this?\u00a0Get in touch and tell us more<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Advertising helps fund Big Issue\u2019s mission to end poverty<\/p>\n Reader-funded since 1991 \u2013 Big Issue brings you trustworthy journalism that drives real change.<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/1683-Fires_Drop_in_01.jpg\")
Langdale Moor, 13 August. Image: North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Support-journalism-in-article-CTA.png\")
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Langdale Moor, 25 August. Image: North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service<\/p>\n