Grassed areas across Mansfield which have deliberately been left untended to encourage wildlife will now be mown to reduce the risk of them catching fire. It comes after a major incident in Forest Town in which local resident Kellie Gillott was left thousands of pounds out of pocket when a vast field fire spread to her property and destroyed a caravan and damaged a car.
Ms Gillott, 46, who has lived in her house on Maunleigh for seven years, questioned why the field where the fire started had been left unmown for so long. She said the grass was "so long before" and that she believed this to be why the flames spread so quickly.
Ms Gillott said she hoped the Forest Town fire had been a "learning experience". And Mansfield District Council has since confirmed the rest of the grass on the field affected by the fire will be mown, along with several other areas in the town.
