Peterborough fire: Firefighters put out flames in Sawtry after 40C heatwave scorches field

Six fire engines scrambled to a field fire in Sawtry where plumes of smoke could be seen for miles after a field fire.

Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue were called at around 5.15pm to the fire, off Gidding Road, where crops had caught fire as temperatures soared to almost 40 degrees across the region.

Firefighters had the flames under control just before 7.30pm but carried on dampening down hotspots into the night and earlier this morning.

Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue said the cause of the fire was ‘accidental’.

A Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue spokesperson said: “We were called at 5.14pm to a fire involving standing crop off Gidding Road, Sawtry.

"Six fire engines attended from Sawtry, Huntingdon, Dogsthorpe, Stanground, Yaxley and Ramsey.

"It was under control by 7.24pm but they continued dampening down hotspots until 10pm. The last crew left at 10.15pm but they returned early this morning to check the area and dampen down again.

"The cause was accidental.”