llanblogger takes first hand look at the fire frontline

UPDATE 8pm Friday ...

Flames are now visible on the mountainside near Llantysilio from the town centre. Taken by llanblogger with a telescopic lens.   

llanblogger exclusive

* The fire is clearly visible from the Horseshoe Pass - currently closed to traffic. 

* The blaze on the mountainside not far from property on the Horseshoe Pass.

* Part of the fire command centre near the Ponderosa Café.

* Llangollen's deputy mayor, Cllr Issy Richards, right, thanks Silviu Pop and his partner Gyulaydan Ali at the S&G Bistro for their donation of today's lunchtime sandwiches.

* Cllr Richards checks donations to the website set up by Cat Meade at Wingetts. 

llanblogger has seen at first hand the massive battle being fought to control a huge fire raging on the mountainsides above Llangollen.

And we have also witnessed the major effort back in town to get vital supplies to the teams of firefighters involved the operation.

Since it flared up again earlier this week the blaze has turned many acres of grassland into scorched earth.

Relays of firefighters from Llangollen and other parts of North Wales have since been braving soaring temperatures to beat out the flames.

Numerous people have been supporting them by donating food, water and other items.

And one woman from a local business has co-ordinated an appeal to keep the supplies flowing which had raised over £1,000 within hours of being set up.

This lunchtime (Friday) llanblogger joined Llangollen’s deputy mayor, Councillor Issy Richards, and her partner Mike as they delivered the latest batch of sandwiches and cold drinks to the two locations from where the fire is being fought.

Two big boxes of freshly-made sandwiches came courtesy of Silviu Pop and his partner Gyulaydan Ali at the S&G Bistro in Castle Street.

Our first delivery was to the fire crews battling the blaze from the hills around Llanstysilio and the second was to the busy command centre which North Wales Fire & Rescue has set up with other emergency services on the car park of the Ponderosa Café on the Horseshoe Pass.

The pass itself was closed by the county council earlier today at the request of the fire service who said sightseers were hampering their operations. However, we had special permission to use it for our delivery.

We had hoped to speak to some of the Llangollen-based firefighters who have been in the thick of the action but a colleague from the Wrexham station said they were busy in an inaccessible part of the nearby mountainside.

* One grateful firefighter's

message on Facebook.

However, he thanked Cllr Richards sincerely for the donation and said it would be much appreciated by the crews.

Back in town Cat Meade from Wingetts estate agents in castle Street described how as a gesture of support for what the fire crews were doing she had arranged an online donation page the money from which will help to pay for more supplies.

Cat, who lives in town, explained how she had set this up around 8pm last night and within minutes it had started clocking up the pounds. By around 1pm today the donation total stood at just over £1,000 with more coming in by the minute.

She said: “I’ve been overwhelmed and very touched by the amazing response to the appeal.”

Cat said other cash donations were being made in person by members of the public at her office.

Food, water and soft drink supplies have also been coming in from a host of local businesses and a supply collection point had been set up as far away as Oswestry.

The BBC reports that 60 firefighters are currently tackling the blaze above Llan, with 12 crews involved at Llantysilio and near the Horseshoe Pass.

The fire service said its control room has received calls from concerned people reporting smoke in the air from 12 miles away in Wrexham.

* To donate to Cat’s appeal go to: gf.me/u/j5y9gc

Horseshoe Pass closed by fire

North Wales Police have just issued the following message on social media:

A542 Horseshoe Pass LLANGOLLEN will be closed due to mountain fire. 

Please avoid the area.  People taking photographs have been causing problems for fire crews.

Keep away for your safety and take alternative route.

A further message from the county council says:

The Horseshoe Pass is closed until further notice. The request has been made by the North Wales Fire and Rescue to allow them to continue to deal with the grass/gorse fire. We will let you know as soon as the situation changes. Thank you for your patience during this time.

Rising rock band Gallops dashes for the Fringe

After announcing their reformation and releasing their much anticipated second album Bronze Mystic in April 2017, experimental rock band Gallops have been storming headline shows and festival appearances across the UK and beyond.

Tomorrow (Saturday) Gallops will headline Llangollen Fringe Festival alongside rising US hip hop artist Miss Eaves (pictured) as part of the International Beats night.

Shanthony Exum (aka Miss Eaves) is a fierce femcee known for her unique electro-pop-rap feminist stylings and fun-dance-explosion stage presence.

With her tongue-in-cheek rhymes in tow, her music has led her to perform at shows such as Tomorrowland, Dour, Les Rockomotive, and a packed out gig at South by Southwest. Most recently, touring with Wheatus and MC Frontalot around the UK.

* Tickets for International Beats at Llangollen Fringe Festival are on sale now at www.llangollenfringe.co.uk 

Gallops and Miss Eaves are joined on a stellar bill (the festival's biggest to date) by LEE SCRATCH PERRY, CRAIG CHARLES, MARK RADCLIFFE’s GALLEON BLAST, LAURA CORTESE & THE DANCE CARDS, LINTON KWESI JOHNSON, LLOYD LANGFORD.  Plus the return of BAND FOR A DAY, the music themed STEAM TRAIN and AQUEDUCT BOAT trips, and many other fringe events.

The event rounds off with its now legendary closing concert in the stunning surrounds of VALLE CRUCIS ABBEY. The Fringe Finale at the spectacular Valle Crucis Abbey will this year feature the ethereal sound of GOLDEN FABLE and THE NEW SINFONIA ORCHESTRA.

Tickets for all other Llangollen Fringe performances are also available from the website, or by calling the Fringe box office: 0800 1455 779.

Latest official update on mountainside fire

North Wales Fire and Rescue Service continues to impress upon communities the importance of being extra careful and to stop and consider the consequences of grass fires during the current heatwave.

Crews remain at a gorse fire in Llantysilio in Llangollen after having first being called to the scene over a week ago - demonstrating just how much of a drain on resources these fires can be.

Firefighters have been continually present at the scene of this fire ensuring it is brought under control and kept under close surveillance - and once again this afternoon the fire has gathered pace in prevailing winds with seven appliances in attendance tackling an extensive fire front.

With part time or retained firefighter resources being used to tackle this incident this means that local employers are also affected as staff are released to attend the fire.

Kevin Roberts, Senior Fire Safety Manager, North Wales Fire and Rescue Service said:

“Fires like this one in Llantysilio, where access is extremely difficult and water supply is limited, place tremendous pressure on our resources. Our firefighters have been tied up for a considerable length of time working to bring it under control.

“It’s still too soon to determine the exact cause of this fire but we continue to strongly urge people to take extra care when they are out and about in the countryside to help reduce the risk of such fires – especially in such unprecedented dry weather.

“In these dry conditions, fires involving grass, bracken and heather can develop extremely quickly, especially in raised winds, and can soon get out of control and spread to neighbouring properties or forestry, with the need for us then to attend to extinguish them.

“So if you are out and about, it is more important than ever in these conditions to make sure that any smoking materials are discarded and extinguished properly. If you are camping, again make sure that campfires or barbeques are fully extinguished. Better still, avoid open fires altogether in this dry period.

“We would like to thank the public for acting in a safe and responsible manner by notifying us of such fires - we ask people to keep well away from the area affected to allow firefighters to continue to deal with the incident, and for their own safety.

“And we would also like to thank our firefighters who are working in challenging conditions, their employers for releasing the from work, and our partners such as Denbighshire County Council for their assistance.

“Remember - setting fires is a criminal offence and we are actively working alongside North Wales Police to combat deliberate incidents – those found to be responsible will be prosecuted.

“Anyone with information on such crimes is advised to anonymously call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”

Padde-boarders dice with death on the aqueduct

The Shropshire Star has a story about paddle-boarders taking huge risks in the hot weather 125ft up on the Pontcysyllte Canal aqueduct.

For the full story, see:

https://www.shropshirestar.com/news/local-hubs/mid-wales/llangollen/2018/07/26/dicing-with-death-125-feet-up-warning-issued-to-aqueduct-paddle-boarders/?platform=hootsuite

Town councillor helps organise supplies for firefighters

2nd UPDATE ...

More dramatic fire pictures have been sent to the blog by Val Roberts. 

They show the scene in the morning and then the afternoon from Pentredwr. The Horseshoe Pass can be seen below the fire.

Thanks to Val for sharing them with our readers.

1st UPDATE ...

Donations of water and food (pictured below) have been made to the firefighters tackling the blaze by residents and local shops #helpourfirefighters.

Donations are at Wingetts and also the Leisure Centre.

* The fire scene at 10am today (Thursday). Smoke can be seen

rising from various points on the hillside.

* The fire at its height last night.

A Llangollen town councillor is helping to organise supplies for the firefighters who have spent the night battling a blaze on the mountainside near Llantysilio.

After being damped down over a week ago the fire in the undergrowth reignited yesterday afternoon.

Later in the evening seven fire engines were involved in the effort to bring the blaze under control.

Back in Llangollen Town Councillor Issy Richards was making arrangements to get supplies to the firefighters.

She said this morning: "I've spoken to Fire Chief Kevin Jones and he said that the fire dampened down overnight, but they are expecting it to kick off again as the day warms up.

"At the moment, they are about to swap the crews, so they don't need anything now, but he expects supplies will be needed later on.

"Wingetts have very kindly offered to take supplies in, we can also use the Council Chamber  - where you vote, around the corner from the Town Clerk's office - if required, to store supplies. I will be there from 9am today.

"Although I am a town councillor, I am acting just as a resident who lives near the Fire Station and is very aware of the tireless efforts made by these brave firefighters.

"Town Councillors Andy Beech and Karen Edwards will be around today to help too."

Pengwern gets free taxis to beat bus problem

A free taxi service is now running on the bus route between Llangollen town centre and Pengwern.

According to one of the local county councillors, Graham Timms, this has been arranged by Denbighshire until a suitable bus to serve the area can be arranged.

He explained: “There has been an intermittent problem with the service between the town centre and Pengwern due to the lack of availability of a suitable bus.

“I understand that the service will only cover Pengwern if a small bus is used. When a larger bus is used on the service it has been missing out the Pengwern section of the route, causing problems for residents who have been unable to catch the bus into town, or who have been left to find their own way home when the smaller bus is not available for the return journey. 

“I understand that the route is under a Wrexham contract with a financial contribution to the service being also made by Denbighshire.”

Cllr Timms added: “The situation is clearly highly unsatisfactory for local residents who rely on this route.

“easybus are trying to resolve the problems and are likely to have the service back to normal in August.

“Until that time Denbighshire have agreed to put a taxi service on the bus route running at the same time as the easybus timetable to ensure that passengers are provided with public transport according to the timetable provided.

“It will also ensure that passengers can travel on to Llangollen Health Centre should they wish. The taxi service is being provided by Premier Cars and will be free to bus users until the normal service is resumed. 

“Residents have been discouraged from using the service due to the intermittent and unreliable provision at a time when we should be encouraging the use of public transport. 

“There may be some duplication in the service until easybus are able to resolve their problems as they are unable to predict when their Pengwern service will run.

“The taxi replacement taxi service started on Monday 23rd July.”