THIS was the dramatic scene confronting firefighters after a cliff-side inferno broke out overlooking Bournemouth beach.

The blaze, with flames leaping more than 12 ft into the night sky, was visible for miles along the coast and prompted more than fifty 999 calls.

Flames came yards from a row of beach huts worth tens of thousands of pounds, but only heathland and scrub was destroyed.

It came during a busy night for Dorset Fire and Rescue Service, who were also forced to deal with a midnight heathland arson attack at Poole’s Bourne Valley nature reserve.

This Bourne Valley blaze, which was deliberately started in three separate areas, is being treated as arson and police have been notified.

However, the cliff-side fire, which occurred at 10.50pm, on Sunday, at Durley Chine, Bournemouth, close to the Marriot Highcliff hotel, is believed to have started accidentally.

The incidents have prompted fire fighters to issue renewed safety warnings, especially during the hot weather where heathland and scrub is so susceptible to fire.

On the Bourne Valley arson, Dorset Fire and Rescue Service arson and youth diversion manager Gaynor Mant said: “This was quite late at night and came close to housing.

“The ground is very, very dry and the moment and these fires can be quite violent.

“On the urban heaths you have a higher concentration of people living nearby, so unfortunately fires happen more frequently.

“We’ve worked really hard to reduce these incidents through out education programme, however, it is hard to get to the hardcore element. We are now down to the few who still seem to think it doesn’t matter.”

On the Durley Chine fire Mrs Mant said the exact cause was yet to be established.

But she added: “Disposable barbecues or poorly discarded cigarettes have caused a lot of problems in the past, especially on grass banks down on the beach.

“In the past fire has taken out beach huts, so there is a cost implication as well as the damage to the environment.

“In this dry time people really need to be careful with cigarettes and barbecues and how they dispose of them.”

Around 34 fire-fighters tackled the cliff-side blaze, including six fire engines and the aerial platform. An area 60 metres square was destroyed.

At Bourne Valley a combined area of 265 x 100 metres of heathland was destroyed.

Firefighters also attended a second arson attack on Sunday night. Firebugs struck at Queen’s Park Golf Club, Charminster, Bournemouth, setting two small areas of vegetation alight.