unattended fires

[bloodline]

Just nipped out with me jacks for a walk down Eastcourt Meadow (riverside country park) and found an abandoned campfire burning in the middle of quite a few acres of dry grass and undergrowth . No one in sight and nothing to put it out with . Then I had an idea I needed a pee so I put the flames out with a good squirt of that . That gave me time to run back to the car and get the large bottle of screen wash to finish the job. What really hacks me off is my dog went off on his own whilst I prevented the fields from catching fire leaving me and the bitch to find the bugger fortunatley he wasnt far. I know its been raining today but most of the foliage is still bone dry. Whats wrong with people?

 

[beowolf762]

It's called stupidity :aargh4:

 

[bambodoggy]

Happens far to much round here too. The other week I was out with AndyN and Mark_a from here and we found an old fire. It looked like it had been going a day or so but under control and then put out, however, it was in pine woods and was on top of the neddle litter layer and it hadn't been put out properly. It had been slowly smoldering along and burning so that when we found it instead of being a round fire as it had been made it was now keyhole shaped and heading towards a tree. If it had got to the tree then that would have gone up and then the rest of the forest!

Luckily Mark had his water bottle with him and I found an old coke can and we took turns going to the canal which was about 100metres away until we were able to put it out.

Scarey thing was that people had been repairing/replaceing the fencing in that place and this was one of their fires!!!!! They really should have known better!

Bam.

 

[wingstoo]

These are a couple of photo's of the Malvern hills last month.

There is usually at least one fire a year on the hills, most caused by muppets out for a walk.

LS

 

[Shewie]

We had a similar scenario to Malvern over here in Ilkley for the last month or so. Also started accientally by a stray fag. Depending on wind direction the smoke carried for up to 20+ miles somedays.

It`s now been dampened so the constant soundtrack of buzzing helicopters has ceased. Which is nice !

 

[geoff88]

Have to say that I was rather annoyed at some of the people at the Moot just walking off and leaving their fires. You would think that they at least would know better.

Geoff

 

[Challenger]

Some people just don't consider their actions. I had a similar experience the other summer in a local Country Park, I was out walking and noticed smoke coming from behind a fallen tree, some thoughtless person(s) had finished with their disposable BBQ, placed it inside a carrier bag, still with the burning coals and then thrown it into the undergrowth. The bag had just started to melt and the dead grass was starting to burn.

It is thoughtless actions like this that can cause large amounts of damage and endanger life.

 

[Seagull]

Yup, and heres yet another example of how some folk can be completely mindless sometimes.

Around three weeks ago, at the coastal resort of Bridlington, it was reported in the local rag, that a youngster had sustained severe burns to his feet, having been larking on a bit of the beach where some burk had shallow buried the unextinguished charcoal briquettes, from his beach barbie.

Aint it amazing eh? youre on a beach , for Gawdsakes, in the middle of a hot summer, kids playing everywhere and all the North Sea in front of you...and think "Hmm, gotta put this fire out, better bury it eh?"

Where do they get ,em.


Ceeg

 

[geoff88]

Yup, and heres yet another example of how some folk can be completely mindless sometimes.

Around three weeks ago, at the coastal resort of Bridlington, it was reported in the local rag, that a youngster had sustained severe burns to his feet, having been larking on a bit of the beach where some burk had shallow buried the unextinguished charcoal briquettes, from his beach barbie.

Aint it amazing eh? youre on a beach , for Gawdsakes, in the middle of a hot summer, kids playing everywhere and all the North Sea in front of you...and think "Hmm, gotta put this fire out, better bury it eh?"

Where do they get ,em.


Ceeg

Shame more people don't use contraception.

Geoff

 

[falling rain]

Have to say that I was rather annoyed at some of the people at the Moot just walking off and leaving their fires. You would think that they at least would know better.

Geoff

Although I wasn't at the moot I would imagine the fires that were left were small and intended to be returned to in a short space of time ie: folks going to the loo or gathering a bit of wood etc. I have left fires before to carry out such small tasks and as long as your fire is sited correctly in the first place (not in pine woods - needles etc) and on a large space of bare earth. with no overhanging trees or shrubs etc, brushed back well so there is nothing to ignite by accident. There is no problem with this. Fires shouldn't be left overnight or for long periods but for a short while as long as great care has been taken I would say it's fine IMO. I'd imagine most forest fires happen through people's ignorance of how to manage their fires correctly and site them correctly in the first place. One sign of a bushcrafter as opposed to someone who has little experience of fires is the size of his/her fire. A bushcrafter would have a fire as big and only as big as his/her needs, say a small brew fire or lunch fire someone with little experience may have an almighty bonfire going which serves no purpose and is simply not necessary.

 

[geoff88]

Although I wasn't at the moot I would imagine the fires that were left were small and intended to be returned to in a short space of time ie: folks going to the loo or gathering a bit of wood etc. I have left fires before to carry out such small tasks and as long as your fire is sited correctly in the first place (not in pine woods - needles etc) and on a large space of bare earth. with no overhanging trees or shrubs etc, brushed back well so there is nothing to ignite by accident. There is no problem with this. Fires shouldn't be left overnight or for long periods but for a short while as long as great care has been taken I would say it's fine IMO. I'd imagine most forest fires happen through people's ignorance of how to manage their fires correctly and site them correctly in the first place. One sign of a bushcrafter as opposed to someone who has little experience of fires is the size of his/her fire. A bushcrafter would have a fire as big and only as big as his/her needs, say a small brew fire or lunch fire someone with little experience may have an almighty bonfire going which serves no purpose and is simply not necessary.

Er no this was people going off for long periods of time to attend workshops Etc. and this was more than one fire on more than one occasion! In fact one of the members here had to intervene to stop a basher becoming damaged.
Do you think I would have bought this up for what you are suggesting?

Geoff

 

[falling rain]

Er no this was people going off for long periods of time to attend workshops Etc. and this was more than one fire on more than one occasion! In fact one of the members here had to intervene to stop a basher becoming damaged.
Do you think I would have bought this up for what you are suggesting?

Geoff

OK Geoff88, fair comment then in that case....... I was trying to give folks the benifit of the doubt. I've been to lots of meet-ups and courses where fires have been left for short periods for the reasons I stated and always the fires were laid and sited correctly and there have never been any problems, so I thought maybe these cases were similar. I suppose if I wasn't there, I shouldn't have commented. I was just sort of visualising things from my own experiences and thought the cases you mentioned would have been similar. I stand corrected then.

 

[Harmonica]

I was out for a walk today planning to try out my new hammock and poncho shelter when i found a very large star fire (and by large i mean made of decent sized tree trunks) which on closer examination was still smoldering away on its own with no sign of anyone nearby.

Fortunately the idiots responsible had left loads of empty beer bottles lying around so i was able to fetch water from a stream to put it fully out - about 40 beer bottles full of water later!!!

All the while of course i was looking over my shoulder expecting either:-

1. The culprits to return and be mad at me putting out their fire
2. The landowner to arrive and accuse me of lighting the fire in the first place which would have been an obvious conclusion since i had a woodsaw and hatchet in my pack and an emergency firelighting kit!!

It's people being so irresponsible that risks giving us all a bad name

Harmonica

 

[martin]

We found two lads camping out in a tent this morning on Crowle Moor and they had a fire. Crowle Moor is a lowland peat bog and fires are a diffinate no no. The fire had burnt about 6 inches into the ground. The lads said they didn't know about not having fires on peat. We explained the dangers (read gave them a bo*******g) involved and how the ground itself will burn. We put 40 gallons of water on the fire site and probed a good foot down further down with sticks, hopefully it's out. Setting fire to the peat could land you in prison for 6 months and cost you a £3000 fine.

There was a big fire on the moors some years back and it was getting close to a cottage on the edge of the moor. The Fire Service dug a 6 foot deep ditch which they filled with water around the cottage. The next day the old lass who lived there came out and told the Fire Service there was smoke coming through the floor boards. The fire had gone under the ditch and had come up in her cellar.

 

[laurens ch]

Its worst round here people delibritly set fire to the forests and dead brackern.Ive managed to stamp a few out before they spread but its risky to yourself.

 

[P@ul]

Called the Firebrigade out to my local wood today.

Found a area about 6 sq metres in a pine wood smouldering with a few flames around the edge which I managed to stomp out.

The fireman told me this was the third time in as many weeks they had been out to this wood, they believe and I think they are right that it is the local kids who have several camps in the area.

Such a shame, I think more kids should be out in the fresh air but not if they are trying to burn down the wood.

 

[Kepis]

Had the fire brigade out in the back field from home, farmer has just harvested the wheat, loads of chaff around, and someone flicked a ciggie butt out of the car window, set fire to the field and the hawthorn hedge, thankfully it wasn't too big a fire, but a length of hedge about 20m long has been devastated.