Hornchurch Country Park fire damage in drone photos

Aerial photos show the extent of the damage to Hornchurch Country Park following the blaze on Friday (August 14), which prompted a major response from the London Fire Brigade.

Fourteen fire engines and around 90 firefighters were called to the scene after the first of 20 emergency calls was received at 3.16pm.

Patches of blackened grassland can be seen (Image: Peter Barrett)

Crews from Romford, Ilford, Hornchurch, and nearby stations attended the incident.

The fire was brought under control by 5.31pm, but crews remained at the park into the evening to dampen down the land.

The London Fire Brigade said crews worked to extinguish "multiple seats of fire"; this is evident from the drone photos which show several large patches of blackened grass, in between trees and paths.

The fire took nearly two hours to put out (Image: Peter Barrett)

Hornchurch Country Park and the Ingrebourne Hill area have faced a number of wildfires this summer, including to woodland and scrubland off Berwick Pond Road and South End Road.

The Recorder visited the park after weeks of heatwaves and fires, and saw the destruction which has been caused to multiple hectares of land.