A moorland fire on the Woodhead Pass is believed to have started after a crashed car caught fire, forcing the closure of a major route between South Yorkshire and Greater Manchester. The incident highlights the heightened wildfire risk posed by very dry ground and peat, which can allow fire to spread below the surface.

Firefighters were called to the A628 near Flouch at about 13:30 BST on Thursday and remained until around 23:00, with follow-up work continuing on Friday. About 250,000 litres of water were used on Thursday, while crews used thermal-imaging drones to check for remaining hot spots; no injuries were reported and one direction of the road remained closed.