15 May 2009

Please be careful and thoughtful to people living near you if you have a bonfire, says Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service.

The plea follows a call to a shed fire in the early hours of this morning which started after a bonfire in a neighbouring property spread to the garden fence.

Firefighters from Beaconsfield were called to Wooster Road, off Seeleys Road in Beaconsfield, at 1.36am. The shed and its contents were destroyed.

Crew Manager John McGee said: “The bonfire had spread to the fence panels of the two adjacent properties and then to the shed. Fortunately the fire was contained before it could spread further.

“With a little thought and planning, many of the things people currently burn on bonfires can be recycled, turned into compost or taken to household waste sites.”

Terry Ridgley, who heads Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service’s community safety team, said: “On several occasions, we have been called out in the night by neighbours who think the fire is out of control.

“Perhaps now is the time for people to think longer and harder about whether they need to light bonfires at all.

10 tips for a safe bonfire (if you have to have one at all)

• Don’t leave bonfires unattended.
  
  
• Don’t put dangerous rubbish on your bonfire like aerosols, batteries, paint or old foam furniture. They may cause explosions or give off poisonous fumes.
  
  
• Never leave children unsupervised and, before lighting the fire, check that no children or pets have crawled inside to hide.
  
  
• Don’t light a bonfire if it’s windy in case burning embers blow away and start fires.
  
  
• Site bonfires well away from houses, garages, sheds, fences, hedges, overhead cables, trees and shrubs.
  
  
• Build the stack so that it is stable and will not collapse outwards or to one side.
  
  
• Never use flammable liquids, such as paraffin or petrol, to light the fire.
  
  
• Keep everyone away from the fire – especially children, who must be supervised all the time.
  
  
• For an emergency keep buckets of water or sand ready.
  
  
• Pour water on the embers before leaving.