Stourbridge wildfires devastate West Midlands during record UK heatwave
Multiple fires destroyed 19 homes and damaged 18 others as temperatures hit 38.1°C during the country's fifth consecutive heatwave.
What to know
- Wildfires in Stourbridge destroyed 19 homes and damaged 18 others on Thursday as the UK hit 38.1°C during its fifth consecutive heatwave.
- Fifty-four people were injured across eight fires, with 19 hospitalized; evacuation centers were set up at a local boarding school.
- Officials and residents linked the fires to climate change, with mayor Andy Burnham calling the UK a "tinderbox" and announcing firefighting planes.
- Residents criticized the government's temporary ban on disposable barbecues as insufficient, demanding stronger climate action.
The dispute Residents view the temporary ban on disposable barbecues as inadequate compared to the scale of the climate crisis, calling it "pathetic" relative to the need for systemic government action. · positions read across 2 posts and comments
The fires demonstrate climate crisis urgency and demand stronger government action beyond cosmetic measures.
-
“The devastation was a wake-up call for local people and the country about the impact of the climate crisis. We should have woken up to what's happening climate wise.”
Laurence Green · Mastodon
“It's just the fact you don't expect something to be as exponential as this so quickly. From the span of the area, it's over 40 acres, that's what we've been told.”
Andy Hobbs, Evacuee · The Guardian
Andy Burnham Greater Manchester mayorGemma Hobbs EvacueeGareth Jones EvacueeLaurence Green EvacueePaul Kilbride Headteacher, Old Swinford hospital boarding school
The record 2 articles and posts · last 30 days
What people are saying 2 voices from 1 site · verbatim
- Aug 15
-
L
"Green agreed the devastation was a wake-up call for local people and the country about the impact of the climate crisis. “We should have woken up to what’s happening climate wise,” he said, before calling on the government to make the issue a priority. He dismissed the temporary ban on disposable barbecues, announced by Burnham on Friday, as…
-
R
'the devastation was a wake-up call for local people and the country about the impact of the climate crisis. “We should have woken up to what’s happening climate wise,” he said, before calling on the government to make the issue a priority.' https://www. theguardian.com/environment/20 26/aug/14/stourbridge-wildfires-climate-change