Wembley fire: Firefighters tackle outbuilding blaze during record-breaking heatwave

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Firefighters fought a blaze at an outbuilding in Wembley on Tuesday that erupted during the UK’s record-breaking heatwave.

Around 80 crew members were at the scene in northwest London on Tuesday afternoon after being called to a fire at the back of a row of shops with flats above.

It came as London Fire Brigade declared a major incident due to crews battling “several significant fires” across the capital.

Blazes have broken out across southern England as the UK sweltered in extreme heat and recorded 40C for the first time.

Smoke could be seen billowing from behind a row of shops along the Broadway in Wembley on Tuesday afternoon.

London Fire Brigade said it was first alerted to the blaze around 2pm and had received more than 40 calls over it.

“An outbuilding at the rear of a range of shops with flats above is alight,” it said.

The fire service added: “The cause of the fire is not known at this stage.”

At 7pm, the service said that the blaze in Wembley was under control. Half of the ground floor of two shops along with outbuildings at the rear of the properties were alight, they said, with around 50 people evacuated.

London Fire Brigade said it was attending a number of grass fires - including in Croydon and Hendon - on Tuesday afternoon, as well as a restaurant fire and another involving a garden fence and trees elsewhere in the capital.

Around 100 firefighters were also attending a blaze at a residential area in Wennington.

“The number of serious incidents has prompted the Brigade to ask people to only call 999 if there is an emergency or if there’s an immediate risk to life and not to have barbecues or bonfires,” the fire service said on Tuesday.

Over in Kent, houses were ablaze after a large grass fire broke out in Dartford.

Wildfires also broke out in Cornwall and Pembrokeshire on Tuesday as temperatures soared in the heatwave.

A number of places recorded unprecedented 40C on Tuesday, while others saw sweltering heat in the high 30Cs.