HUNDREDS of creatures have been rescued from St Catherine's Hill following the devastating heath fire on March 31.

Members of the Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust have worked tirelessly to relocate species made homeless following the blaze, which scorched more than 70 hectares of precious heathland.

And almost two weeks on, thanks to "amazing support" from members of the public, around 400 creatures have been saved by volunteers.

Gary Powell of the charity said: "There are still things out there - it has been quite a difficult rescue because there is a lot of semi-burned habitat that things are able to hide in.

"Animals are just going underground. If you spot something and you don't manage to grab it immediately, it's gone. It has been very difficult."

But he praised residents who have turned out in their droves to support the work of the Trust.

"On Easter Monday, about 120 people came out to support us and look for surviving wildlife," he said.

"It has made a huge difference to us. We're still getting groups of people every day. It has been absolutely amazing and we are stunned at the help we have received out here."

The fire, which was started deliberately at three different locations in quick succession, wiped out creatures from dozens of species as it raged for almost 13 hours.

At its height, around 80 firefighters worked to extinguish flames which leapt 35 feet into the air.

The habitat destroyed will take around 15 years to fully recover.

Gary said: "We're still hopefully that a lot of things have survived the fire.

"We have found fewer corpses than we expected, and we hope this means there are creatures that can still be saved. But it's very difficult because we can't be here all the time to ensure that they can be moved to a new location when they do emerge."

He said spring's sunshine gives volunteers a window of opportunity to help rescue affected creatures.

"There's time in the morning and the evening - but nothing comes out in the middle of the day," he said.

"So we aim to cover those times as best we can. If it's a cold day, we won't find anything either. We're just trying to get it right so we can help as many species as possible."

Anyone wishing to support the Trust's efforts is asked to visit facebook.com/ARCTrust for more information.