Firefighters are fighting a large wildfire on Dunwich Heath in Suffolk. The fire burned 150 hectares of forest and plants. This area is as big as 200 football pitches. It is a major incident. More than 100 firefighters are working on the Suffolk coast to stop the flames. The fire is near Britainโs largest nuclear power station. This makes the work difficult.
The weather is very dry in the United Kingdom. England and Wales are having their driest July in 190 years. In England, there was only 5.6mm of rain up to 30 July. This is only 8% of the usual amount. Wales also had only 7.9mm of rain, which is only 8% of its average. Because of this, there is an official drought in all of Wales and more than half of England. The Environment Agency says a "flash drought" is affecting more than half of England.
The fire is bad for animals. Dunwich Heath is a home for rare birds like nightjars, nightingales, and Dartford warblers. These birds need the plants to live. Many birds may die because they cannot find food or a place to make nests. In Scotland, a fire in the Cairngorms burned for two weeks and destroyed 10 square miles of land.
The National Trust is asking for money to help the area. They want to fix the heathland. It will take a long time to help the plants and animals grow back. The dry weather makes the plants turn into fuel for more fires.