"We're Not Out Of The Woods Yet"- Local People Fight Fylingdales Fire

We've heard from a local business owner who lives close to the Langdale Moor fire area, Graham Smith has told of heroism from farmers and other locals working with the emergency services.

The Fire Service have thanked farmers and Graham Smith, who runs Meadowbeck Holiday Cottages and Shephards Huts, opposite the Fylingdales Inn, says he's also been helping out:

" We've actually, to be honest with you, I've been out with the firefighters most of the night and obviously through the day doing a lot of work trying to get this fire put out, but the farmers around this area have been absolutely amazing. They've been really good. If it wasn't for them to be honest, it wasn't for the farmers, the firemen actually said that we want to probably contain the fire.

"So everybody's got together and everybody's booked in the community in total. I've done a real good job, but I don't think we are out of the woods just yet. Obviously, we're covered in smoke up here it is very hard to breathe."

Graham says farmers put their safety in danger at times as people worked to help each other and protect their animals:

 "In the daytime, it was at over at near Hawsker point where it was a fire hydrant and it was there with the fireman, was there with a pool, was an emergency where a tractor went and nearly got fire. A farmer was struggling to get out of the blaze. He had to abandoned, so the tougher fireman had to go. So when the next tractor came, a friend of mine actually helped fill the next tractor with the water from the hydrant.

"So I was doing that on occasions and then was obviously, my good friend Mr. Stringer was feeding them day in the day and making sure they were comfortable, best he could. And then once I actually got back, so I was going, I went out for the day to get the food in for the animals and couldn't get back from Whitby."

Graham says people are continuing to have difficulties getting out to find supplies:

" It's a different world when you've got to think that you've got animals every, there's a lot of people around here that's actually trying to get over the road to transport animals out the way as well. We've, we've got all different kinds of animals here. We, at the moment, we can't move them, so we're trying to keep them comfortable the best we can.

"And obviously the intake of smoke is not good for the black isn't for us, but it's the transportation side that we haven't got personally. We've got a smallhold in here and we find that quite hard to be able to move any animals anywhere. I spoke to the, the chief firefighter and said, have we got to evacuate? And he actually said. No, we can't see why you've got to evacuate the other side of the road. That will take a lot of doing, and I think we've controlled it this side. Obviously it must have crept up again overnight."

Graham some people have had to be evacuated and others turned away as the situation remains dangerous:

"We'll put the hands on deck again. But he said while he was doing that, the police must have got involved and must have sat around the table somehow, and they've obviously told the Police to go and evacuate everybody.

"So we got customers that have been come on the holidays and been sent home. So when I got down, as you can imagine, I wasn't quite happy when I heard it from a fire officer. And so I confronted the police officer and said, who's told you? And he said, he says that's what I have my orders, I've had to tell everybody to go home.

"There's farmers out there that's not, there's been nothing for 48 hours. Yeah, I was talking to a farmer there. He's been doing the 48 hours and he's been saying where we're going to go next. You know that they're the men. It brings the best out and the worst out in people, doesn't it?"

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue have warned people to stay away. The Police say to observe road signs in order not to put themselves and others at risks. Several roads are closed in the area of the fire.