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Devastating aftermath of Wennington wildfire revealed in aerial shots


Chard houses left in Wennington Village, 20 July 2022. The heat that destroyed houses in East London village ???worst nightmare??? event. Dramatic footage shows a huge fire raging through homes in the suburb of Wennington on the outskirts of the capital as the town scorched in 40C temperatures. The city's heat has fueled a series of fires, putting firefighters under heavy pressure and prompting authorities to declare a major emergency in the city.

People in the East London village of Wengington have never seen anything like yesterday’s blaze (Image: SWNS)

Dramatic aerial footage shows the aftermath of a blaze that tore through houses in an east London village.

Several homes were destroyed in Wennington yesterday after an out-of-control grass fire spread dangerously.

The capital city has experienced temperatures of over 40 degrees Celsius and wildfires have broken out in other parts of the country.

The London fires were so bad and frequent that the London Fire Brigade declared a ‘major incident’.

About 100 firefighters tackled the nearly 100-hectare blaze in Winnington, which destroyed at least six cars, 12 stocks and five cars.

About 90 people were evacuated from their homes yesterday for fear that they might not be able to return.

The blaze raged across bone-dry wasteland, with one firefighter describing the situation as ‘absolute hell’.

? Licensed to London News Pictures. 20/07/2022. Wennington, UK The church of St Mary and St Peter in the village of Wennington, east London, is surrounded by scorched grass after yesterday's high temperatures. Photo credit: Peter MacDiarmid/LNP

St. Mary and St. Peter’s Church, which survived the fire yesterday, is covered with burnt grass (Image: LNP)

Chard houses left in Wennington Village, 20 July 2022. The heat that destroyed houses in East London village ???worst nightmare??? event. Dramatic footage shows a huge fire raging through homes in the suburb of Wennington on the outskirts of the capital as the town scorched in 40C temperatures. The city's heat has fueled a series of fires, putting firefighters under heavy pressure and prompting authorities to declare a major emergency in the city.

About 100 people were evicted from their homes without knowing they were there when they returned (Picture: SWNS)

Aerial images of the Wennington village wildfire caused by the UK heatwave. A building is seen burning after a fire. Pictured: GV, Overview Reference: SPL5327495 200722 Non-Exclusive Image by SplashNews.com Splash News and Pictures USA: +1 310-525-5808 London: +44 (0)20 8126 1009 Berlin: 14376175 @splashnews.com World Rights ,

Aerial images show the devastation left behind in Wennington Village (Image: SplashNews.com)

Chard houses left in Wennington Village, 20 July 2022. The heat that destroyed houses in East London village ???worst nightmare??? event. Dramatic footage shows a huge fire raging through homes in the suburb of Wennington on the outskirts of the capital as the town scorched in 40C temperatures. The city's heat has fueled a series of fires, putting firefighters under heavy pressure and prompting authorities to declare a major emergency in the city.

London fire brigade yesterday declared a ‘major incident’ as they responded to multiple calls (Image: SWNS)

Chard houses left in Wennington Village, 20 July 2022. The heat that destroyed houses in East London village ???worst nightmare??? event. Dramatic footage shows a huge fire raging through homes in the suburb of Wennington on the outskirts of the capital as the town scorched in 40C temperatures. The city's heat has fueled a series of fires, putting firefighters under heavy pressure and prompting authorities to declare a major emergency in the city.

Cars, vehicles and valuables were destroyed in the fire (Picture: SWNS)

A resident was said to be digging a trench around his house to prevent the rapidly spreading fire.

Janet Hickey, 70, was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer and was forced to stop taking all her cancer drugs, the BBC reported.

She said: ‘I’m very ill so it wouldn’t be good to lose all that. I’m an artist too, all my paintings are there.’

Another woman was heard hysterically crying and saying, ‘Oh my God – the house is gone.’

Despite all this chaos, the Church of St Mary and St Peter in Wennington miraculously appears to be unscathed, despite its surroundings being reduced to ashes.

Chard houses left in Wennington Village, 20 July 2022. The heat that destroyed houses in East London village ???worst nightmare??? event. Dramatic footage shows a huge fire raging through homes in the suburb of Wennington on the outskirts of the capital as the town scorched in 40C temperatures. The city's heat has fueled a series of fires, putting firefighters under heavy pressure and prompting authorities to declare a major emergency in the city.

Yesterday was the worst day for London’s fire brigade since the Second World War (Picture: SWNS)

Chard houses left in Wennington Village, 20 July 2022. The heat that destroyed houses in East London village ???worst nightmare??? event. Dramatic footage shows a huge fire raging through homes in the suburb of Wennington on the outskirts of the capital as the town scorched in 40C temperatures. The city's heat has fueled a series of fires, putting firefighters under heavy pressure and prompting authorities to declare a major emergency in the city.

Some people took shelter in the church but it quickly began to fill with smoke (Image: SWNS)

Chard houses left in Wennington Village, 20 July 2022. The heat that destroyed houses in East London village ???worst nightmare??? event. Dramatic footage shows a huge fire raging through homes in the suburb of Wennington on the outskirts of the capital as the town scorched in 40C temperatures. The city's heat has fueled a series of fires, putting firefighters under heavy pressure and prompting authorities to declare a major emergency in the city.

A resident is said to have started digging trenches around his house to prevent the spread of the fire (Picture: SWNS)

The cemetery Timothy Stock, 66, his wife and neighbors went to the medieval church.

But within hours, the second section detailed the 12th-century building. i reported that it started to fill with smoke.

Mayor Sadiq Khan said it was the busiest day for the London Fire Brigade since the Second World War.

On a busy day, the service receives about 500 calls, but yesterday the service reached more than 2,600.

A total of 16 firefighters suffered heat-related injuries, two of whom were admitted before being taken to the hospital.

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Speaking to Sky News this morning, Mayor Sadiq Khan said: “The challenge in London is we’ve got lots of grass, lots of green space, but most of it is on property.

Wind-driven fires can start quickly and spread quickly when the grass is incredibly dry when it hasn’t rained for a long time.

The good news is that today’s fire service provides excellent service. Today, the first fire engine arrives in six minutes, the second engine in eight.

It was taking 20 minutes yesterday due to the pressure on the fire brigade.’

Mr Khan added that it was important to ‘recognise’ that yesterday’s fires were ‘one of the consequences of climate change’.

Met Office Chief Scientist Professor Stephen Belcher said this week that it was “almost impossible” for the UK to reach 40°C in an unbroken climate.

“But climate change driven by greenhouse gases has made these extreme temperatures possible, and we’re seeing that possibility now,” he added.

Contact our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more such stories See our news page.



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