Incident updates – Fires at Walter Tull Way, Valley Walk and Islip

Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service has been busy dealing with a host of incidents this weekend and into this morning (August 17).

These incidents have included:

Walter Tull Way, Northampton – 09.20 update (August 17)

Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service was called to a fire on Water Tull Way, Northampton, at around 9.45pm yesterday evening (August 16).

Four pumps attended and, on arrival, crews found a fire involving approximately 50 square metres of hedgerow, bushes, and fly-tipped waste.

Wearing breathing apparatus, firefighters used extended hose reel jets to extinguish the blaze.

The final crews left the scene shortly before 12.45am today (August 17).

Firefighters returned later this morning to carry out an after-fire inspection. Using thermal imaging cameras, crews checked for hotspots, which were then dampened down using a hose reel jet and drag forks.

The cause of the fire is believed to be deliberate.

Valley Walk, Kettering – 11.00am update (August 17)

Two separate fires either side of a riverbank near Valley Walk in Kettering are believed to have been started deliberately on Saturday (August 15).

Fire crews were called to a blaze involving grass, trees and scrubland, covering roughly 200 metres by 200 metres, shortly before 12.30pm on the Valley Walk side of the riverbank. A short while later, a second fire on the other side of the riverbank, just off Deeble Road, was affecting some hedges and crops.

At the peak of the fire, we had four fire engines on the scene as well as a support vehicle and water carrier.

Firefighters used hose reel jets to bring the fires under control, but hotspots in the vegetation were continuing to start small fires until well into the evening, and the following morning.

Shortly before noon the following day (Sunday August 16) the fires on both sides of the riverbank had been fully extinguished. After an investigation, we believe the fire was started deliberately.

Two fire crews from Kettering and Burton Latimer were called to Islip shortly before 4.30am on Monday (August 17) to reports of a hay bale stack on fire (pictured above).

Firefighters arrived at the scene, at a field just off the A6116, and found 200 bales in one stack well alight. Crews have been using hose reel jets to dampen down the surrounding areas.

The bale will be allowed to burn out, and the farmer has been assisting by using machinery to pull the stacks apart – which will help this process go quicker.

We are making good progress and the smoke plume has significantly reduced. We will shortly be downscaling the incident to one appliance, which will continue to monitor the fire throughout the day and ensure it burns off safely.

No cause has been determined yet – an investigation will take place as soon as it is safe to do so.