Nineteen houses 'fully destroyed' in Stourbridge fire after multiple West Midlands blazes

Here is a run-down of today's key moments

• A man, 55, has been arrested on suspicion of arson to endanger life after the fire on Hillmeads Road in Kings Norton, Birmingham, in which a number of homes were evacuated.

• A 23-year-old man and 24-year-old woman, both from Stoke-on-Trent, have been arrested in connection with the fire in Sandyford which left six homes completely destroyed and others badly damaged.

• Elsewhere, crews are still damping down the scene in Stourbridge where Prime Minister Andy Burnham visited earlier to meet with firefighters and residents who have been evacuated from their homes.

• While he was in the market town, Burnham said the government would impose a ban on disposable barbecues until further notice, citing the pressure on fire services during the ongoing dry spell in the country.

Ethan Saunders
BBC Radio Stoke

Brian and Carol Silcock have lived on Sandy Road in Stoke-on-Trent for 35 years.

Brian said the fire had burnt everything down in their yard including his shed, fence, greenhouse and fruit plants.

He and his wife, Carol, were going to a nearby cricket club when they got a call from their neighbour about the fire and turned back.

"We saw the detached house in the entry, that was on fire, absolutely horrendous that was," he said. "Ours were next to that.

"We stopped at friends last night... we're at my sons for a few days."

He said last night was stressful for them both, and Carol's pets were still inside the house: "That smoke was absolutely horrendous, you could see it for miles."

Everyone needs to "act together" to stop further fires in Staffordshire, the fire service's chief officer said.

Glynn Luznyj said, after the blazes in Stoke-on-Trent, Park Hall Country Park, Tamworth and Cannock Chase, the whole county needed to help in order to minimise the chances of more fires.

"Our resources are extremely stretched at the moment because of the unprecedented demand we're facing," he said.

"This has resulted in numerous firefighters being taken to hospital. Five have thankfully been discharged and the sixth continues to recover."

People were asked not to burn garden waste and to be responsible when having a barbecue over the next few days - keeping them away from vegetation and keeping a water source or sand nearby.

Aida Fofana
BBC News, reporting from Birmingham

Mike Davis and his family spent the night at his in-laws house after they were evacuated from theirs in Stourbridge.

"It was a hell of a scene... thick smoke and just something I've never seen before," he said.

“We just grabbed a few things and headed out.

“It was really, really scary to see.”

He described a surreal scene of thick smoke bellowing down the road and people wheeling suitcases out.

“When the police knocked on the door and asked us to leave... it hit us both really hard because we just didn't know whether we'd have a property to come back to.”

How many fires started by disposable barbecues?published at 17:00 BST

By Anthony Reuben

Today’s government announcement says: "Disposable barbecues have been the cause of a number of serious wildfires across the country over the summer months."

A large wildfire on heathland in Staffordshire earlier this summer was blamed by the local fire service on a disposable barbecue, but specific figures are hard to come by.

A government response, external to a petition in 2025 calling for a ban on disposable barbecues described the number of fires caused by barbecues as “relatively low”.

The latest data from the Ministry of Housing, external suggested that in 2024, out of 45,673 "accidental fires" in England, 229 were started by barbecues.

The fires were in a wide variety of locations, ranging from parks, woods and beaches to wheelie bins, a cinema and even a hairdresser.

But the statistics did not distinguish between disposable barbecues and more permanent ones, although a government minister last year said that they wanted the data to include a separate category for disposable ones in future.

Phil Mackie
in Stourbridge

The golf course in Stourbridge continues to be dampened down by firefighters, more than a day after the huge blaze ripped through the area.

The second photo, taken down Racecourse Lane, shows the site where authorities believe the fire started:

Millie Trenholm
in Pershore

Newland’s Fish Bar in Pershore, Worcestershire, spent Thursday evening donating trays of fish and chips to people who had lost their homes in the fire.

Chris and Maria Christodoulou, who work at the business, said they wanted to do something to help the community.

“It’s our town. We love the people that are here and we felt really upset for them," Maria said.

"Pershore always comes together when someone’s in need. So what more could we do than give a helping hand.”

Matt Taylor
BBC Weather

Despite a small drop in temperature compared with yesterday, the Fire Risk index remains "very high" across most of England and Wales today, according to Natural England and the Met Office.

Further drops in temperature and an increased chance of rain will see the risk gradually lowered across northern England, the Midlands and much of Wales into the start of next week.

However, with conditions remaining mostly dry across southern England and an increased breeze expected, the risk remains "very high" with isolated pockets of "exceptional" on Monday and Tuesday.

At least three homes and several gardens have been destroyed by fires in Willenhall, a market town between Walsall and Wolverhampton.

Two fires broke out there on Thursday night - first on Stonehouse Avenue and then on Harry Perks Street. Residents were evacuated and taken to a rest centre.

“I’m in awe of those residents who got stuck in, rolled their sleeves up, got their hosepipes out and tried to contain the fire while they waited for the fire service to get there," said Labour councillor Simran Cheema.

“There was a bit of delay because perhaps teams had been deployed to other fires, but in that moment people just got stuck in and it was really heartwarming to see communities pulling together to try and contain the fire and offering support to those who have been affected as well.

“I’m really grateful to everyone involved and can’t thank their heroic efforts enough.”

Earlier this afternoon, the prime minister spoke to reporters in Stourbridge.

• Andy Burnham said the UK "was a tinderbox" with 37 fires "smouldering around the country"
• The PM said a Cobra meeting has been held to coordinate the government's response and that Chancellor John Healey's working towards providing emergency financial support
• Burnham added he wanted to give the fire service "the extra resources" they need and said the government will commission firefighting planes to tackle future wildfires
• Burnham also spoke to BBC Radio 5 Live, describing what he had seen as "devastating" and urging people not to set fires outdoors: "Please don't do it"

Stick with us as we continue to bring you the latest updates.

Six people, including three firefighters, have been injured by the fire, Tuhill adds.

"Demand remains exceptionally high across West Midlands Fire Service," Tuhill says.

He adds that while the fire is under control, there are a number of hot spots, and his team will be "maintaining a presence" over the coming days, to "dampen down" those hot spots.

He also urges the public to "stay away from our incident ground".

Tuhill goes on to say the cause of the fire is not yet known.

He adds specialist fire investigators are working hard to establish the circumstances of the incident, and the fire service are working closely with the police.

In his news briefing, West Midlands Fire Service Chief Fire Officer Simon Tuhill says 19 houses have been fully destroyed and 18 damaged by the fire in Stourbridge.

He says the incident "covered an area of approximately 500 acres".

Simon Tuhill, the West Midlands Fire Service chief fire officer, is giving an update now - you can watch it live at the top of the page.

We'll bring you key updates.

Anthony Marsh, chief executive at West Midlands Ambulance Service, has praised all the emergency services for "their professionalism and hard work" around the multiple fires on Thursday.

"Yesterday was an extremely busy day for our crews, responding to a number of serious fires across the region," he said.

"I am immensely proud of my commanders and staff for the way in which they performed their duties."

Chloe Hughes
West Midlands

Speaking about the temporary ban on the sale of disposable barbecues, Andy Burnham told Radio 5 Live: "We've got 37 fires across England and Wales right now.

"I can't say to you that all of them are down to disposable barbecues, they're not, and I wouldn't claim that, but it's probable that some of them have been caused in that way."

"I would just say more broadly to everybody: these problems are far from over. We're going into a difficult weekend, please just think about the situation that we're in.

"Setting a fire in any outdoor setting of any kind is a risk to other people's homes. It's a risk to other people's lives. Please don't do it."

The government will commission firefighting planes in order to tackle future wildfires, Burnham says.

“That obviously wasn’t available [in Stourbridge], but it will be available elsewhere, and it would have made a difference,” the prime minister added.

The Chancellor John Healey would be working to prepare emergency financial support for fire and rescue services, Andy Burnham said, to help them with an unprecedented level of demand.

The prime minister added to reporters at the scene in Stourbridge that he also wanted to make sure insurance companies were providing quick support to people affected by the recent fires.

For councils, there was also support to help them with the costs of responding to incidents, he said.

Isabella Boneham

Four firefighters were taken to hospital with heatstroke and stress while crews were going “above and beyond” to tackle fires, Warwickshire Fire Brigades Union said.

A blaze that erupted on Tothall Lane in Salford Prior, south Warwickshire on Thursday, temporarily closed the A46 but had since been brought under control.

Neil Stuart, the union’s secretary, said that its members have “really stepped up to the mark” with people cancelling leave, and those meant to be off work have come back in to help operate different fire engines.

The prime minister said he wanted to reassure residents that he would do "everything he can" to support them, as he praised the emergency services for their work in recent days.

Speaking to reporters in Stourbridge, Andy Burnham said they were tackling 37 across the country, including four major incidents with the military sending 100 personnel to south Wales.

Meanwhile, fire and rescue services across the UK were supporting one another and the prime minister said aerial firefighting support had also been deployed nationally.