The aftermath of the Roaches fire

Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service has thanked the community for their support while it dealt with a large moorland fire near Leek.

The road closures are still in place and we are asking people to stay away from the area until after the Bank Holiday. Our rangers operations are still ongoing as some of the peat is still burning and flare ups are still possible so our work is ongoing to cool down any remaining hotspots.

Crews were called to the fire on the Roaches on the afternoon of Thursday, August, 9 and remained at the incident until today, Tuesday, August 21. At the height of the incident there were 12 appliances at the scene, along with specialist vehicles including water carriers, command support and a welfare pod. It is estimated that the fire has destroyed around 200 acres of moorland, woodland and heath.

Partners from Staffordshire Wildlife Trust are continuing to dampen down any remaining hotspots and they will decide when the area and nearby roads are safe to reopen fully.

Staffordshire Wildlife Trust’s Jeff Sim said: “The road closures are still in place and we are asking people to stay away from the area until after the Bank Holiday.

“Our rangers operations are still ongoing as some of the peat is still burning and flare ups are still possible so our work is ongoing to cool down any remaining hotspots.” 

Glynn Luznyj, Director of Prevent and Protect, said: “We’ve received overwhelming support from local residents and businesses alike and couldn’t have responded to this incident without the support of our partners.

“We’ve carried out numerous reinspections at the incident and are happy that the risk has reduced enough for us to leave the scene. However, a number of dams remain across the area so that Staffordshire Wildlife Trust rangers can deal with any small hotspots or areas of concern. Of course if required we will revisit.”

SFRS would like to thank the following:

• Staffordshire Moorlands District Council
• Party Houses
• Roach Hall
• The Ship at Wincle
• The Royal Oak Rushton
• Heaton House Rushton
• Dominos, Leek
• The Winking Man
• The Roaches Tea Room
• The Red Cross
• Rapid Relief
• Staffordshire Wildlife Trust
• Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service
• Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service
• Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service
• SFRS Fire Control
• SFRS wholetime and retained firefighters
• Members of the public
• Volunteers
• Severn Trent Water
• Staffordshire Police
• West Midlands Ambulance Service
• Peak District National Park Rangers
• Jon Beech, a recovery company who helped by digging a pit for firefighters to use as a dam to pump water close to the fire.
• Members of the Fire Operations Group and those companies contracted in under these arrangements
• Roy Wilsher, Chair of the National Fire Chiefs Council, (NFCC) Phil Garrigan, NFCC National Resilience Lead for the NFCC and Paul Headly, NFCC National Lead for Wildland Fires.