With the news of extreme temperatures, and the fires in Greece, finally hitting the headlines in the UK, it’s pertinent to remind ourselves that, despite the current wet weather, these things are affecting us at home too.
Last year, around 50 hectares of the Hankley Common nature reserve in Surrey, were affected by a wildfire that took several days to get fully under control. After the fire had been put out I went to see the damage.
The first thing I noticed was how black everything at or around ground level was, even on this bright, sunny day. The ground was scorched and dusty, and the base of the trees were blackened. Then, as I walked into the damaged area, the smell of burnt wood hit me.
On the day I went, I remember there was a very cold wind blowing as I got out of the car with my gear. But when I walked onto the common itself, I felt this wall of heat, not unlike walking out of an air-conditioned hotel in a hot climate. I moved my hand near to the surface, and I could feel that it was noticeably warmer than the air temperature.
I’m glad I saw this sign attached to a tree not long after I got there, as I noticed that parts of the ground were still smouldering, with smoke rising from it. The notice says: “Surrey Fire & Rescue Brigade are aware there has been a fire, it will continue to smoulder and there will be small flames for a few days. Please only call 999 should the fire cross the wide fire breaks and spread further”
Originally I hadn’t intended to take any photos, as I just wanted to see what it looked like, and if it might be a subject worth photographing. But I had thrown my camera bag over my shoulder, because you never know!
I did find it a very difficult subject to actually photograph, as there was a lot of black against black. I ended up trying to shoot towards the sun, so that it would backlight the subject matter, and offer a degree of contrast.
It was hard to look at this once green and vibrant area, now reduced to a blackened mess, without feeling a tremendous sense of sadness. Although the main disruption to local people was keeping their windows closed for several days, lots of wildlife was killed or displaced in the fire. Fires like this have happened in several places across Surrey, and commons seem particularly vulnerable.
When I got back to my car I noticed that my boots were covered in a sooty dust. I’m mildly asthmatic, and later that day my asthma kicked in for the first time in months, which I attributed to inhaling all the smoke & ash particulates as I walked about the common.
Whatever your thoughts on climate change, there can be no doubt that this isn’t a good thing to be happening regularly.
DK
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