A LARGE heath fire in north Bournemouth at the weekend is believed to have been started deliberately after crews found an empty box of firelighters at the scene.

Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service received 16 calls about the blaze on Turbary Common, the largest area of heathland in north Bournemouth, which raged on Saturday (June 18) until being extinguished by several crews.

Firefighters from Redhill Park, Westbourne, Ferndown, Poole, Wareham, Ringwood and a water carrier from Hampshire attended the scene, while police were stationed in Turbary Park Avenue to direct traffic after one lane was blocked due to the presence of a fire engine.

Crews worked quickly to extinguish the flames and used three appliances, two of which were main line jets. The fire was found to have affected an approximate area of 20m by 20m.

Following investigations, incident commander Jason Browne from Redhill Park told the Echo: “We think the cause is deliberate but the intent is unknown at this moment. An empty box of firelighters were found nearby but whether they’re connected remains to be seen.

“Everywhere has been damped down and is safe.

“At the moment with the hot spell, we really urge people not to have barbecues or open fires on the heathland.”

Nearby resident Catherine Carter was in her home which backs onto the common when her mother first noticed the smoke at around 5.30pm before calling the fire service.

Bournemouth Echo: The fire at Turbary CommonThe fire at Turbary Common

Catherine said: “My house backs onto the common and we saw loads of smoke first. Then we saw lots of fire before this massive burst of flames went up.

“I thought we may have to evacuate at one point because it was getting closer and closer. A huge area of the common has been burnt though.”

The final crews left the scene shortly after 6.20pm having extinguished all remaining hotspots.

This incident came after an amber wildfire alert was issued for parts of the Dorset area for the weekend – meaning there was a higher-than-usual risk of wildfires.

Dorset area manager Damien Bence said: “All too often, we see property destroyed when an initially small fire suddenly gets out of control. Never leave a bonfire or barbecue unattended, and site them well away from fences, trees or buildings.”