Lineside Fire Spreads to Moorland Near Goathland

Thursday, 25 May 2023 18:18

By Matthew Pells

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service say multiple crews responded to the incident earlier today.

The Fire service were called at 11:50 this morning to reports of the fire at Eller Beck near Goathland.

Crews from Lythe, Goathland, Whitby, Malton and an argocat from Kirkbymoorside responded to a report of a line side fire that spread to open moorland.

North Yorkshire Fore and rescue say:

"Crews extinguished a fire measuring approximately 40,000sq meters that was caused by sparks from a train at the line side.

Crews worked with game keepers to dampen down hot spots and the perimeter before handing the incident over to local game keepers and North Yorks Moors Railway staff."

Passengers on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway report that the line was closed while the incident was dealt with and say coaches were arranged to provide return transport between Goathland and Pickering.

Chris Price, CEO of the North Yorkshire Moors Railway (NYMR) said:

"We can confirm that services on the NYMR were affected today (25 May 2023) by a lineside fire at Ellerbeck; the trains impacted were the 12.00 from Pickering, which returned to the station and formed a shuttle from Pickering to Levisham; the 12.35 from Whitby, which terminated at Grosmont; and the Moorlander, which ran a revised route from Grosmont to Goathland.

We apologise to those passengers impacted; the safety of both staff and passengers is always our priority. We would like to thank the North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service for all their assistance."