Page 15 - br-sep-2022

September 2022 September 2022

#BRINGAPICNICNOTABBQ

If British Summer Time and warmer days
means you will be visiting one of Dorset
& Wiltshire’s local heathlands or
outdoors spaces to enjoy the wildlife
and wilderness, please take a picnic.

Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue
Service (DWFRS) are encouraging
residents and visitors to take a picnic
and not BBQ. Warmer and breezy
weather increases the risk of accidental
or deliberate fires in our open spaces. A
wildfire can move at speeds faster than an Olympic sprinter, so we are asking
people who are out and about to follow some simple steps:

If you are enjoying our open spaces when a fire occurs, get to a safe place and
call 999 with as much information as possible.
Consider downloading and using What3Words to identify your exact location.
You can also help by reporting any antisocial behaviour on the heath to the
Police on 101.
During 2021, DWFRS dealt with 494 fires in the open. In 2022, we have already
seen large wildfires in Dorset & Wiltshire and firefighters across the UK have dealt
with more wildfires between January and May than in the whole of 2021 (243
compared to 237 in 2021).

Area Manager Marc House, Head of Prevention at DWFRS said: “As we move into
the summer, with longer daylight hours and warmer weather, understandably
more people want to get out and use Dorset & Wiltshire’s natural environments.
There is a trend that the number of deliberately set fires and fires caused by BBQs
and bonfires in these open spaces, increases.
He added: “I cannot stress enough how important it is to take extra care when
enjoying our beautiful open and forestry areas. If you are a smoker, please
extinguish them fully before disposing of them responsibly – never ever just throw
them away lit, similar to throwing them out from car windows – the result could be
50 or 100 firefighters tackling the subsequent blaze.”
Anyone caught starting a fire on a heath will be prosecuted whether it is a case
of deliberate arson or neglect, for example an unauthorised camp fire or a
disposable BBQ that gets out of control. Wildfires cost lives not only to
endangered plants and animals but also put people and houses in danger.
We need your help to protect our countryside. Please #BringAPicnicNotABBQ

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