Eco & Environment, Wimborne | Posted on August 11th, 2025 | return to news

Residents rally as firefighters tackle Holt Heath blaze

Around 100 firefighters tackled a weekend-long blaze which destroyed around 70 hectares of land near Wimborne.

Around 100 firefighters, including crews from outside Dorset and Wiltshire, were summoned to tackle a blazing heathland fire at Holt Heath near Wimborne over the weekend in difficult conditions, made worse by the public trying to take pictures.

Crews including 14 fire appliances were called out at 11.10am on Saturday 9 August following reports of smoke in the area. The spread of the fire was being accelerated by the wind.

Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue (DWFR) declared the fire a major incident. Resources were stretched as crews also tackled a fire on Newton Heath.

On Sunday 10 August, support arrived from other fire services, including Devon & Somerset, Hampshire & Isle of Wight, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Royal Berkshire as firefighters worked in arduous conditions. By Sunday evening, the fire was surrounded but there were multiple hotspots and flare ups.

DWFR said on Monday that even more appliances and specialist support from other parts of the country had been summoned, thanks to help from the National Resilience Assurance Team.

Around 70 hectares of land had been destroyed by the fire so far.

Over the weekend, DWFR had to close several roads and warn the public to stay away as people were getting too close trying to take pictures of the fire, or using drones overhead.

Assistant Chief Fire Officer Darren Langdown said: “I would ask the public to help us by staying away from the affected areas; the fire at Holt Heath, in particular, is spreading rapidly and anyone trying to see what’s going on could be cut off very easily. We would also ask photographers not to fly drones near the fire, as we are using drones provided by Wessex Rescue to help us direct our firefighting.”

Despite this, many residents rallied to help the firefighters by bringing them donations.

On Monday, DWFR thanked local residents for their support. A spokesperson said: “We would like to say a huge thank you to Morrisons in Verwood and Tesco Express in West Moors for donating food and water; the Dorset Food Company for providing an on-site hot food van; the Salvation Army for supplying drinks and snacks; and the many local residents who have dropped off donations.

“We’ve had lots of offers to deliver food and drink to fire stations, but we would ask for this not to happen as there may not be anyone available to take delivery. We are extremely grateful for the support and all the kind messages we have received.

Attending stations included: Blandford, Wimborne, Poole, Hamworthy, Bridport, Wareham, Salisbury, Trowbridge, Redhill Park, Springbourne, Sturminster Newton, Devizes, Swanage, Chippenham, Sherborne, Pewsey, Bradford on Avon, Cranborne, Verwood, Ludgershall, Westbourne, Maiden Newton, Wilton, Stratton, Tisbury, Beaminster, Dorchester, Mere, Malmesbury, Cricklade, Lyme Regis, Corsham, Amesbury.