Huge moorland blaze tackled

Huge moorland blaze tackled

The second moorland blaze to hit West Yorkshire in a week

Fire crews have been damping down at the scene of a fire that has devastated a huge area of moorland in West Yorkshire.

The blaze destroyed approximately five square miles of countryside in Wainstalls, near Halifax.

Dry weather and high temperatures have been blamed for the moorland fire - the second to hit the region in a week.

An area of two square miles of moorland was destroyed by fire in Marsden, West Yorkshire, on Sunday 13 April.

Soaring temperatures

Halifax Fire Station spokesman Craig Mallinson said they had brought the fire under control, but were still hoping for a change in the weather.

"Temperatures have been hotter than Spain so that is why we're getting these grass fires.

"The fire is still ongoing but the weather has got a lot colder so hopefully the fires will start dying down."

"We're hoping for a bit of rain because all of our resources are being used at the moment - we need them for other fires.