Wildfire near Sizewell nuclear plant causes ‘total devastation’ to Suffolk landscape
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- Dunwich Heath wildfire has burned approximately 150 hectares (370 acres, equivalent to 210 football pitches) of protected National Trust and RSPB Minsmere reserve since Wednesday evening, with over 100 firefighters aided by a helicopter dropping 1,000 litres of seawater per pass and six London fire brigade appliances.
- National Trust general manager Russell Clement said the reserve was now "unrecognisable" with "total devastation," while director general Hilary McGrady launched an emergency fundraising appeal to restore the rare lowland heathland visited by 100,000 people annually.
- RSPB Minsmere area manager Adam Rowlands said surviving nightjars, nightingales, and Dartford warblers will "likely perish" without suitable habitat, after seeing nightjars flee a 20ft fireball; he estimated decades for vegetation to re-establish.
- EDF confirmed the blaze is not affecting Sizewell B operations, and emergency planner Freddie Gulliver said there was no immediate concern about the fire spreading toward the nuclear station, though the fire service still classified the incident as "major" and "dynamic" on Friday afternoon.
- Suffolk fire chief Jon Lacey warned Suffolk received only 2% of its average July rainfall, with half of England and all of Wales officially in drought, advising residents against disposable barbecues; Labour MP Jon Pearce separately called on retailers to suspend their sale.
- About 50 people were evacuated from homes and Cliff House holiday park, with Westleton village hall converted to a rest centre; 23-year-old evacuee Connor Dowsett told the Press Association the scene felt like "the end of the world," describing an orange moon and brown smoke.
- Green party leader Zack Polanski called for an emergency Cobra meeting on wildfires across Britain, while the source identifies Andy Burnham as having promised Suffolk's fire service "all of the support" it needed.
- Fire crews were also tackling a blaze on Middlewick Ranges in Colchester (~50 firefighters), a long-running fire in the Cairngorms in Scotland, and several wildfires across Doncaster this week, as most of Europe endured its fourth summer heatwave.
Why it matters: A 150-hectare scorch on a National Trust reserve hosting rare nightjars and Dartford warblers shows how this summer's record drought — Suffolk at 2% of average July rainfall and half of England officially in drought — is converting well-visited landscapes into catastrophic fire zones, with simultaneous ecological and nuclear-safety stakes given the proximity to Sizewell B.
