| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 00:29 - Jul 30 with 1910 views | Guthrum |
It is bad but, on the other hand, nature uses wildfires as a method of forest/heathland renewal. So long as no homes or livelihoods are under threat, it's not that much of an issue. |  |
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| A beautiful part of the world - hope they manage to get it under control on 07:55 - Jul 30 with 1603 views | unstableblue |
It’s been a long long time since any real rain in Suffolk; proper drought now.
Farmers yields must be a challenge this year.
Man made climate change is real, scientific research is overwhelming yet the likes of Nigel Farage and Trump have moved the dial to scepticism and denial. |  |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 08:08 - Jul 30 with 1538 views | NthQldITFC |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 00:29 - Jul 30 by Guthrum |
It is bad but, on the other hand, nature uses wildfires as a method of forest/heathland renewal. So long as no homes or livelihoods are under threat, it's not that much of an issue. |
It's a couple of hundred metres from Minsmere though - in that photo anyway - maybe not so far now. |  |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 08:15 - Jul 30 with 1506 views | Mullet |
I hope all those people posting about ignoring the hosepipe ban have lovely gardens still…
I bloody love Dunwich so hope it’s not sorted and no one is at risk |  |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 08:56 - Jul 30 with 1389 views | unstableblue |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 00:29 - Jul 30 by Guthrum |
It is bad but, on the other hand, nature uses wildfires as a method of forest/heathland renewal. So long as no homes or livelihoods are under threat, it's not that much of an issue. |
Guthers - I think controlled burning of Suffolk Heath has been done to provide the benefits you outline. Not sure how much natural burning has happened historically in Suffolk.
Let’s just hope this doesn’t get out of control as I think will do more damage to the ecosystem than good; and of course villages and nature reserves in that area.
As per my post this is unprecedented weather. | |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 09:08 - Jul 30 with 1333 views | WeWereZombies |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 00:29 - Jul 30 by Guthrum |
It is bad but, on the other hand, nature uses wildfires as a method of forest/heathland renewal. So long as no homes or livelihoods are under threat, it's not that much of an issue. |
It takes a lot to get me to downvote you Guthrum but this is Benters level of denial. |  |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 09:55 - Jul 30 with 1233 views | DJR |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 08:08 - Jul 30 by NthQldITFC |
It's a couple of hundred metres from Minsmere though - in that photo anyway - maybe not so far now. |
Today's EADT reports that RSPB Minsmere was thought to be ploughing a firebreak around a farm north west of Dunwich Heath.
Its latest news is that the fire is not under control. It also say the fire service has said that there is no current risk to Sizewell B. However, they added it is a live and dynamic situation and any updates will be shared accordingly.
https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/26 [Post edited 30 Jul 9:57]
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 10:43 - Jul 30 with 1120 views | JammyDodgerrr |
Good job SCC rescinded that Climate Emergency that isn't real, then.
Craziness. |  |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 12:10 - Jul 30 with 981 views | WeWereZombies |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 08:56 - Jul 30 by unstableblue |
Guthers - I think controlled burning of Suffolk Heath has been done to provide the benefits you outline. Not sure how much natural burning has happened historically in Suffolk.
Let’s just hope this doesn’t get out of control as I think will do more damage to the ecosystem than good; and of course villages and nature reserves in that area.
As per my post this is unprecedented weather. |
And it is not just Dunwich:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/art
'Thousands of people have been evacuated on the Greek island of Crete as wildfires fanned by strong winds menace tourist resorts and villages.
Around 8,000 people were evacuated overnight in Rethymno, where gusts have reached 125km per hour.
The evacuations came after two firefighters died on the island on Wednesday after getting trapped near Krya Vrysi, and a third died near the Peloponnese port town of Gytheio.
Greece is among many European countries facing devastating fires and droughts as the continent experiences extreme high temperatures.
Forecasters warn fire-prone conditions will spread towards the centre of Europe this week, with Greece and Turkey among places most affected.'
This is in addition to wildfires near Bordeaux, Madrid and in the Cairngorms this week alone, we've seen similar patterns within the last two decades in Australia and California but the concentration of adverse weather conditions in the Mediterranean and Western Europe is a significant effect of clinmate change now and will be for the forseeable future. | |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 12:13 - Jul 30 with 966 views | Trequartista |
Been watching this on SKY for the last half an hour. Haven't seen a single drop of water being aimed at the fire - is it a tactic to just let it burn? SKY keep repeating this tree catching fire over and over to make it look more dramatic. |  |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 12:29 - Jul 30 with 886 views | Wallingford_Boy |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 00:29 - Jul 30 by Guthrum |
It is bad but, on the other hand, nature uses wildfires as a method of forest/heathland renewal. So long as no homes or livelihoods are under threat, it's not that much of an issue. |
What about the wildlife? |  |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:17 - Jul 30 with 761 views | stonojnr |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 09:08 - Jul 30 by WeWereZombies |
It takes a lot to get me to downvote you Guthrum but this is Benters level of denial. |
But its true, I remember even watching a David Attenborough series that covered this about elements of life i think wind, water earth and fire, and that from bush fires in Australia, the brush fires in California and yes on heathland in the UK that actually fire is part of the natural eco system and renewal of those habitats and actually they come back much more stronger and richer in biodiversity as a result.
There are actually several native Australian plants that rely on the intense heat of wildfires to spread seeds, its called serotiny
Which is why we do actually engage in controlled burning, of such habitats, not just to protect homes, people and things to minimise the danger of a wildfire and it getting out of control, but also to manage those habitats.
This isnt a controlled burning, and it obviously presents real danger to life, wildlife and loss of important rare habitats, the stuff is protected for a reason. Its not a good thing at all, no one is celebrating it, but the heathland will recover, the wildlife will recover. |  | | |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:22 - Jul 30 with 723 views | Zx1988 |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 12:13 - Jul 30 by Trequartista |
Been watching this on SKY for the last half an hour. Haven't seen a single drop of water being aimed at the fire - is it a tactic to just let it burn? SKY keep repeating this tree catching fire over and over to make it look more dramatic. |
It sounds like a tactic I've heard about somewhere.
It's such a large fire that you're never going to put it out. It makes sense that the focus would be on containment and protecting surrounding areas, and letting it burn itself out. | |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:49 - Jul 30 with 637 views | SuperKieranMcKenna |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 00:29 - Jul 30 by Guthrum |
It is bad but, on the other hand, nature uses wildfires as a method of forest/heathland renewal. So long as no homes or livelihoods are under threat, it's not that much of an issue. |
Wouldn’t it kill a lot of the wildlife though? | | | |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:52 - Jul 30 with 615 views | DJR |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 12:13 - Jul 30 by Trequartista |
Been watching this on SKY for the last half an hour. Haven't seen a single drop of water being aimed at the fire - is it a tactic to just let it burn? SKY keep repeating this tree catching fire over and over to make it look more dramatic. |
The Scottish government requested in vain aerial military help for the fire in the Cairngorms.
Maybe we just don't have much in the way of alternatives to firefighters on the ground in areas where fires are not common.
But we are talking about an area of outstanding beauty which is owned by the National Trust and is close to the unique Minsmere RSPB reserve.
And the recent prognosis from the EADT is not great.
"Firefighters could be tackling the blaze for the next 48 hours.
Incident commander Christopher May, from Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service, updated the public on social media on the seriousness of the blaze at Dunwich Heath, which started at 5.30pm on Wednesday." | | | |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:54 - Jul 30 with 591 views | DJR |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:49 - Jul 30 by SuperKieranMcKenna |
Wouldn’t it kill a lot of the wildlife though? |
This from the EADT.
The RSPB has said the fire is "hugely consequential" for the local wildlife.
It could take up to 25 years for the heathland to return to the state it was in before the fire. | | | |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:57 - Jul 30 with 571 views | DJR |
Get on with it!
"Emergency services are discussing whether a helicopter should be brought in to drop water on the fire."
As it is, I've seen Spanish aircraft in operation in an area of sand dunes and pines forest next to the sea where they skim water from the sea to help put out the fire. If those resources were involved here, the fire would have been out long before now. [Post edited 30 Jul 14:01]
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:57 - Jul 30 with 565 views | Trequartista |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:52 - Jul 30 by DJR |
The Scottish government requested in vain aerial military help for the fire in the Cairngorms.
Maybe we just don't have much in the way of alternatives to firefighters on the ground in areas where fires are not common.
But we are talking about an area of outstanding beauty which is owned by the National Trust and is close to the unique Minsmere RSPB reserve.
And the recent prognosis from the EADT is not great.
"Firefighters could be tackling the blaze for the next 48 hours.
Incident commander Christopher May, from Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service, updated the public on social media on the seriousness of the blaze at Dunwich Heath, which started at 5.30pm on Wednesday." |
The EADT reports " 1:26pm 30/07/26 Emergency services are discussing whether a helicopter should be brought in to drop water on the fire."
I am thinking if you have helicopters that can drop water in your inventory, what level of fire are you waiting to reach that exceeds "uncontained, size of 14 football pictures and 4 miles from nuclear power station" ? | |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:59 - Jul 30 with 552 views | WeWereZombies |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:17 - Jul 30 by stonojnr |
But its true, I remember even watching a David Attenborough series that covered this about elements of life i think wind, water earth and fire, and that from bush fires in Australia, the brush fires in California and yes on heathland in the UK that actually fire is part of the natural eco system and renewal of those habitats and actually they come back much more stronger and richer in biodiversity as a result.
There are actually several native Australian plants that rely on the intense heat of wildfires to spread seeds, its called serotiny
Which is why we do actually engage in controlled burning, of such habitats, not just to protect homes, people and things to minimise the danger of a wildfire and it getting out of control, but also to manage those habitats.
This isnt a controlled burning, and it obviously presents real danger to life, wildlife and loss of important rare habitats, the stuff is protected for a reason. Its not a good thing at all, no one is celebrating it, but the heathland will recover, the wildlife will recover. |
Yes, I know the narrative. I live in a Scottish glen where muirburn is practised. I don't like it myself and I can almost guarantee a family of mice will take up residence in my house afterwards. Slash and burn is possible when there was a low level of global population but the concatenation of natural and man made processes is making it start to look like a very bad idea anywhere now. | |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 14:11 - Jul 30 with 496 views | Swansea_Blue |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:17 - Jul 30 by stonojnr |
But its true, I remember even watching a David Attenborough series that covered this about elements of life i think wind, water earth and fire, and that from bush fires in Australia, the brush fires in California and yes on heathland in the UK that actually fire is part of the natural eco system and renewal of those habitats and actually they come back much more stronger and richer in biodiversity as a result.
There are actually several native Australian plants that rely on the intense heat of wildfires to spread seeds, its called serotiny
Which is why we do actually engage in controlled burning, of such habitats, not just to protect homes, people and things to minimise the danger of a wildfire and it getting out of control, but also to manage those habitats.
This isnt a controlled burning, and it obviously presents real danger to life, wildlife and loss of important rare habitats, the stuff is protected for a reason. Its not a good thing at all, no one is celebrating it, but the heathland will recover, the wildlife will recover. |
Yep. And fuel availability that you mention is one of the biggest drivers of the intensity of wildfires. It’s been identified as the main driver of African savannah wildfires, with a lack of fuel contributing to a reduction of total burn area globally in recent decades. Whilst climate change is leading to an increase in higher likelihood of fires as the number of days conducive to burning are globally increasing. It’s an interesting area of research (I hope I’ve paraphrased correctly). |  |
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| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 18:57 - Jul 30 with 222 views | DJR |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:57 - Jul 30 by Trequartista |
The EADT reports " 1:26pm 30/07/26 Emergency services are discussing whether a helicopter should be brought in to drop water on the fire."
I am thinking if you have helicopters that can drop water in your inventory, what level of fire are you waiting to reach that exceeds "uncontained, size of 14 football pictures and 4 miles from nuclear power station" ? |
The area affected by the wildfire at Dunwich has grown to 150 hectares, the equivalent of approximately 210 football pitches, according to an update by the Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service. | | | |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 19:18 - Jul 30 with 170 views | TrimandBlue82 |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 13:54 - Jul 30 by DJR |
This from the EADT.
The RSPB has said the fire is "hugely consequential" for the local wildlife.
It could take up to 25 years for the heathland to return to the state it was in before the fire. |
It's devasting. Fire can be used to manage heathland but is more a thing on inaccessible moorland and done in blocks on a rotation. Heather has four different stages to it's growth cycle and Dunwich Heath will have had Heather at all four stages of that cycle and being managed in such a way to maintain the open habitat mosaic. Everything that grows back both Heather and scrub like gorse will all be the same age and not have the structure to support what lives there for years and years. It's one of the best sites in Suffolk for reptiles too and they will all have perished. I'm unable to put into words how bad this is and I've worked in the conservation industry since 2001 🥹 | | | |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 19:30 - Jul 30 with 105 views | BanksterDebtSlave |
| Dunwich Heath in flames. on 18:57 - Jul 30 by DJR |
The area affected by the wildfire at Dunwich has grown to 150 hectares, the equivalent of approximately 210 football pitches, according to an update by the Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service. |
The wind has also turned 180 degrees to a northerly, can smell the smoke in Saxmundham now. Not good news for Minsmere visitor center...Sizewell should be fine due to the marshes. |  |
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