Ilkley Moor fire: Woman arrested as second blaze erupts in four weeks

Suspect seen ‘behaving suspiciously’ as ban on barbecues considered

Smoke rises from Ilkley Moor during the second blaze in a month (PA)

A woman has been arrested after a large fire broke out on Ilkley Moor in West Yorkshire – in the same area as a destructive blaze four weeks ago.

Fire crews received more than 65 emergency calls as plumes of smoke rose into the sky.

Members of the public alerted police to a woman “behaving suspiciously” near the scene of the blaze, The Yorkshire Post reported.

A 48-year-old woman was arrested, officers said.

Bradford council will ban the lighting of fires and barbecues on local moorland sites following last month’s blaze, according to one report.

The crews sent 10 fire engines to tackle the flames.

Several local residents posted images of billowing smoke, one saying: “Not again – fire on Ilkley Moor close to Hangingston Road after the cattle grid”.

By midday, the fire was out and firefighters were damping down.

Last month flames spread over 50 acres in the area.

It was one of a string of moorland fires across the UK on the warmest Easter weekend on record. Others were at Moray, Scotland, Blaenau Ffestiniog, north Wales, Dartmoor in Devon, moors in Derbyshire and Greater Manchester and the Mourne Mountains in Northern Ireland.

The Ilkley Chat website said a council ban on barbecues would start in July, running for three years, subject to consultation.