WATCH: 'Water bomb' dropped on Hankley Common
Water from Frensham Pond was used
Today (28 July) marks day four of Surrey Fire and Rescue carrying out at operations at Hankley Common following a devastating wildfire.
A major incident was declared when the fire first broke out on Sunday (24 July) and fire crews have remained on the scene since damping down hotspots at the beauty spot.
Yesterday (27 July) SFRS received support in the form of water bombing, provided by the Ministry of Defence.
An Airbourne Solutions Eurocopter AS350 helicopter made numerous trips from Frensham Pond to Hankley Common in a bid to help the service mitigate the spread of the fire.
Whilst operations continue the public is urged to stay clear of the common.
Local residents who were evacuated returned to their homes on Tuesday (26 July).
Waverley Police, the Ministry of Defence Police, and the Defence Infrastructure Organisation have been supporting Surrey Fire and Rescue in the response.
Acting Chief Fire Officer Dan Quin spoke of the joint effort:
“This is the first time in Surrey that we have coordinated water bombing activities from a helicopter to support firefighting operations.
"This additional effort between ourselves, the Ministry of Defence and Surrey Police should go some way in helping us put an end to this wildfire.
"I am very proud of all of the crews and staff who’ve worked on this incident, it’s been another long incident in difficult weather conditions, but we are getting there.
"I’d also like to thank residents, local farmers and the Hankley Common Golf Club who’ve helped us along the way.”
Inspector Sam Adcock, Borough Commander for Waverley, said: “We have been supporting our colleagues at the fire service throughout the week to help contain the fire at Hankley Common, which included aerial firefighting exercises yesterday. A number of road closures were in place which have now been lifted.
“I would like to thank the residents of Waverley for their continued patience with the disruption caused by the fire. I would also like to say a huge thank you to Surrey Fire and Rescue who have been working around the clock to keep us safe.”
Surrey Fire and Rescue have issued an update this morning saying the fire is now under control but will be continually to monitored.
There wildfire vehicles and a command unit at the scene and the fire service hope to continue scaling down their response as the day progresses.