Roads closed after large field fire near Gobowen
Billowing smoke from a massive field fire the size of a football pitch in Gobowen near Oswestry led to the temporary closure of roads nearby this afternoon.
There were closures in place on the B5009 Whittington to Gobowen road.
Paul Price from Shropshire Fire and Rescue said: "We had a call out at 2.10pm saying that a field of cut straw and stubble was on fire and the blaze was spreading.
"At one point the fire stretched 100 metres by 100 metres and strong winds were threatening to spread it even further.
"It was a struggle to deal with and there were three pumps and an incident support unit at the scene.
"By around 3pm the fire was under control and it was a case of damping down for around a further hour."
Oswestry Police Constable Dave Wagg said: "When I got there the fire was the size of a football pitch.
"We closed the main Gobowen to Whittington B5009 road and surrounding roads to the Orthopaedic Hospital as a precaution for drivers because of the smoke.
"It has been dry so the straw went up fairly quickly.
"There was a combine harvester in the field and after talking to the driver, we believe the fire could have been due to a mechanical or electrical fault.
"There was nothing suspicious about it. Some road closures might still be in place so please check before setting out."
