Crews extinguish deliberate fire at Stoke-on-Trent park

Firefighters have tackled a deliberate fire at a park in Stoke-on-Trent.

We were called at 6.35pm yesterday (Wednesday 29 July) to Central Forest Park, Hanley, following reports of a fire.

Three appliances attended the scene and found a large grass fire.

The fire was extinguished using hose reel jets and thankfully, nobody was reported injured.

The cause of the fire was deemed to be deliberate.

Group Manager Rich Williams attended the scene. He said: “I would like to highlight the dangers associated with deliberately setting fires. Incidents such as this not only place members of the public at risk, especially children and families using the park, but also create unnecessary demand on emergency services.

“Resources committed to preventable incidents may not be immediately available for other serious emergencies elsewhere.

“The fire also caused considerable damage to the parkland, destroying a large area of grass and shrubbery used regularly by local residents for recreation, including dog walking and other outdoor activities.”