Norfolk fire crews tackled 674 wildfires in summer of 2022

Norfolk Fire Service was at times tackling more than 50 wildfires a day at the peak of the heatwaves, which also saw a drought declared and temperatures reach a record-breaking 40C.

A freedom of information request has shown that crews were called out to 674 fires involving grassland, woodland and crops during June, July, and August.

Fire crews tackled up to 50 wildfires a day during last summer's heatwave (Image: Newsquest)

That was six times more than in the summer of 2021 when they dealt with 96 wildfires. 

Fire chiefs said the figures showed how staff were “increasingly being challenged by new extremes of weather as our climate changes” while praising the dedication and bravery of officers in tackling unprecedented conditions.

It comes as the National Trust warned that drought followed by a heatwave, which sparked devastating fires like the one that raged through 50 acres of scrub at Wild Ken Hill, near Heacham, could become the new normal for Norfolk.

A wildfire destroyed more than 50 acres of coastal scrubland at Wild Ken Hill (Image: Newsquest)

Homes and habitats were destroyed as temperatures soared with 322 wildfire callouts in July and 258 in August.

A major incident was declared on July 21 after fire crews were swamped with more than 100 calls in a 48-hour period.

Two homes were destroyed by a blaze in Ashmanhaugh after a field fire spread while properties were "gutted" by a fire that spread from a nearby field in Poringland.

Fourteen fire crews were called to Ashill, near Watton, after gardens and homes were engulfed by flames that spread from fields to the green in the village.

Drone footage of the moment when gardens and homes in Ashill became engulfed by flames (Image: Pink Spitfire)

A number of families had to be evacuated as multiple homes caught alight.

The parched environment also saw a blaze that started on a field near the White Horse pub in Brancaster on the north Norfolk coast spread to multiple properties while there was a major fire in Barton Turf, Hopton and Snettisham Coastal Park.

Another spell of blistering heat in mid-August saw wildfires in several more locations.

At the time, Greg Preston, then head of fire prevention at Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service, said: "There were a huge number of incidents and really large incidents which stretched our crews but they performed fantastically with the support of other colleagues from the emergency services.”

The run of heatwaves, along with above-average temperatures in every month except December, meant 2022 was the UK’s warmest year on record, the Met Office said.

Greg Preston, head of fire prevention at Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service (Image: Newsquest)