10 acres of crops destroyed after field fire in Danbury

Firefighters have been extinguishing a fire that started last night in Danbury when a combine harvester caught fire.

Crews from Essex County Fire and Rescue Service attended the fire in Ludgores Lanes at 9:20pm last night (July 17).

Upon arrival the fire had spread to crops - damaging 10 acres.

Two crews from Chelmsford and Maldon, as well as crews from Rayleigh Weir and Witham, and off-road vehicles from Billericay and Burnham were called to tackle the fire.

An updates statement from ECFRS at 11pm stated the field fire had been extinguished, but "four crews remain at the scene dealing with the fire affecting the combine harvester."

The cause is believed to be accidental.

Group Manager Craig McLellan said: "Crews did a fantastic job of surrounding the fire so quickly and stopping it from spreading.

"The fire affected about 10 acres of crops so they had to work incredibly hard to extinguish it. I'd like to thank the farmer for assistance too.

"Due to the rural location, crews have set up a water relay to extinguish the fire affecting the combine harvester."

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