00:00The London Fire Brigade has fought more wildfires so far this summer than in the whole of 2024 in the capital, and that was confirmed by Borough Commander Blake Betts, who spoke to the BBC after three large areas of grassland were destroyed in separate fires that burnt throughout Monday evening in East London.
00:24Some residents in part of Dagenham were asked to temporarily leave their homes as flames ripped through eight hectares of Beam Valley Country Park, or areas of grassland near Wingletai Lane, Hornchurch, and at Walthamstow Marshes as well.
00:44Now, a fourth grass fire, covering just over two hectares, was brought under control by crews in Upminster on Tuesday afternoon, the next day.
00:54Mr. Betts said crews were experiencing a busy summer, but were well prepared with new equipment and training.
01:01About 125 firefighters tackled the Dagenham Fire, the largest of three blazers on Monday.
01:08Firefighters used jets and wildfire beaters to beat the flames, and new specialist wildfire vehicles were deployed.
01:18Crews worked in very challenging conditions to bring the fire under control, according to Mr. Betts.
01:24The London Fire Brigade said that while three such fires in one evening had been a lot for the firefighters, it was not unheard of, and that crews were preparing for more blazes like these.
01:36He added that they were experiencing a very busy summer and certainly haven't had one like this in a few years, but the Fire Brigade were much better prepared for these fires than they were in the past.
01:51So, how are Londoners actually feeling about this?
01:55Yeah, absolutely. I mean, it's not surprising given the heatwaves, of course, but it's not what we expect here in London.
02:01I used to live in California and there were wildfires all the time, and then we move here and think we've escaped them, and suddenly wildfires everywhere.
02:08Yeah, I mean, it is a bit crazy. I've spent quite a bit of time in Portugal, in central Portugal, in the mountains there, and wildfires are a real thing there.
02:19They're huge. And so you kind of look at it and you go, ah, it's just a bit of grass, but it's indicative of something much bigger, isn't it?
02:26So, yeah, it's clearly not an ideal situation. And if grass can go up, how long before houses start going up, you know, so?
02:33Yeah, well, and I don't think we're prepared to deal with this issue. You know, I don't think politicians are prepared.
02:38I don't think the public in general are prepared for wildfire safety because it's not part of our public consciousness.
02:44Yeah, I do, because we're not set up for it. All sorts of problems with the heat we're not set up for.
02:49Like I said about Portugal, like the houses are made out of stone and they don't tend to burn there.
02:54So we've got more to deal with here. I think we may need to start looking at sprinkler systems.
