Dudley Council is continuing to support around 300 people who were evacuated from their homes as a fire raged through the Norton area of Stourbridge. The blaze began in a field near Racecourse Lane, close to Stourbridge Golf Club, and rapidly spread to nearby homes.
Evacuation and Immediate Support
Residents were taken from the danger zone to safe areas including Stourbridge Town Hall, where staff from the authority ensured they had food and shelter. Other organisations and members of the public were quick to offer their help and donations.
However, Dudley cabinet member for emergency planning, Cllr Ed Lawrence, says the situation is under control and people should keep away from the area. He acknowledged the public's generosity but stressed that the immediate needs are met.
Council's Response and Public Safety
Cllr Ed Lawrence said: "We have been looking at social media and we can see there has been a huge outpouring of offers of help to see what people can do to help those residents that have been affected by this fire."
"At the moment we have everything under control, we have our centres open for those that have been affected and we've kindly had food donated by Stourbridge Tesco. We have the right staff in the right place, we will keep an overview of the situation and if you can do anything we will let you know in the future."
Stay Away and Drone Warning
He added: "It's really great that people are wanting to help, the message from the council, from the police, from the fire service is please stay at home, do not visit the area and if you are affected by smoke in the surrounding areas please close windows and doors."
He also echoed a call from the emergency services for people not to fly drones over the area because fire crews are using the airspace to look for hotspots as they damp down the scene.
Cllr Lawrence added: "My heart goes out to everyone affected by the devastating fires and I would like to personally thank everyone in the emergency services for their incredible work in these very difficult circumstances."
If anyone is concerned about a relative who was evacuated, and they are yet to hear from them, they can call the council on 0300 555 2345.
