Dartford fire: Footage shows scorched aftermath of 'chaotic and scary' blaze

Watch the charred remains of the Durrell Dene fire

New footage shows the aftermath of a "chaotic and scary" fire in Dartford.

The blaze broke out on Tuesday afternoon (19 July) near Durrell Dene in Joyce Green.

In the video, miles of scorched earth can be seen, as firefighters continue to dampen down.

The number of crews at the scene has been increased once more after firefighters stayed at the blaze overnight.

The incident was escalated soon after the first crews arrived due to the high temperature and the wind which was blowing across the marshes. At its height, 90 firefighters were there.

One Dartford resident whose house is in a development near the blaze, described the moment it broke out as "chaotic and scary".

One resident was "devastated" to see the fire.

Bachchu Kaini said: "When I was at home I saw thick, black smoke around the green area. I saw it was a very bad wildfire. I ran here and by that time, the fire brigade had sent firefighters already.

"My wife and son were also worried about it. It's a very beautiful place and I was devastated to see the wildfire here.

"I was scared it was going to spread further throughout the development. The apartments are also quite close to this place, just across the road, so a lot of people were worried about the fire here."

Lawrence Pater, group manager at Kent Fire and Rescue Service said: "Crews worked extremely hard to bring the fire under control.

"As with any wildfire, it's a very difficult task as we're battling against flames that maybe have a ten foot height. The extreme heat didn't help us. We had to be really mindful of our crews and they did an outstanding job.

"We've got an area of about four square miles to put out. At its height, we had about a mile of fire front to deal with.

"Across the service, we do plan for this type of event. Although this incident was declared a major incident for us, we had the resources in place to deal with it and the other fire at the A2.

"Obviously during the summer we do endure hot conditions but the hot temperatures for us has just exacerbated that."

Fighting the fire was "a very difficult task".

As there is now less smoke coming from the fire, people living and working nearby are no longer being told to keep their windows and doors closed.

Kent Fire and Rescue service have thanked local people for their cooperation during the heatwave.

The community is said to have supplied firefighters with water and even chocolate and thank you cards.

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