JCB Earth Mover Helps Halt Blackburn Fire

In order to finally stop a fire that had been burning for a night and a day, fire fighters relied on the help of a JCB in order to reach the source.

The fire, which had been causing a significant amount of smoke on Percliff Way in Blackburn, was caused by a pile of rubbish set ablaze by a nearby wood fire at a local haulage company, according to the Lancashire Telegraph.

According to a fire service spokesman, the nearby rubbish was burning under the surface since Sunday 13^th September, but it took until the next day for it to break through and billow smoke into the nearby area.

Because of the unique nature of the fire, a unique solution was needed. Enter a JCB work clothed driver and his familiar yellow earth mover. He was called in to turn the soil over so the Blackburn firefighting team could reach the source of the blaze at the bottom of the pile

Whilst a lot of smoke came from the fire, after fire crews were stationed for roughly 40 minutes the fire was extinguished. No buildings or property near the fire was damaged in any way and there were no injuries reported.

This is not the only time a JCB has been used by the fire service. When a poor cow became stuck in mud in a garden in Somerset this August, a JCB telehandler came to the rescue, using animal rescue equipment with the help of the Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service to get her free, according to the Somerset County Gazette.