Homes Destroyed as Wildfires Grip Britain
Nineteen homes were destroyed by a wildfire in Stourbridge in the West Midlands on the hottest day of the year, as blazes continued to grip the country. The New Forest fire entered its seventh day, and the army remained deployed to around 14 fires in south Wales, where teenagers have been arrested over a deliberate blaze. A nationwide emergency alert was sent to millions of phones.
The destruction of homes marks a grim new stage in a record fire season that has stretched the emergency services to breaking point, forcing the government to deploy troops and issue the kind of mass alert normally reserved for the gravest threats. With the ground baked hard by drought, Prime Minister Andy Burnham has now pivoted to warning of a fresh danger — flash flooding, as forecast rain runs off scorched earth rather than soaking in — and is convening urgent meetings on the toll to farming. The arrests over a deliberate fire have sharpened public anger and the case for the ban on disposable barbecues. Critics question whether preparation matched the scale of the crisis. Watch how the fires are brought under control and whether the rain brings relief or floods.