FIREFIGHTERS have tackled a ‘large’ blaze on a railway embankment near Corfe Castle.

Rail services were halted and people were asked to avoid the area as crews attended an embankment fire near the Swanage Railway line on Saturday afternoon.

The fire had spread through the fields, making it ‘difficult’ for crews to extinguish.

Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue advised they had four pumps, a water carrier and two Land Rovers in attendance shortly after 5pm. 

They said: “We're dealing with a fire involving a rail embankment between Corfe Castle and Harmans Cross. All trains running through Swanage have been stopped - please avoid the area whilst we deal with the incident.”

Read more: Live updates as fire breaks out near Corfe Castle

The service received ‘multiple’ calls from the public, with some Bournemouth and Poole residents reporting seeing the smoke from their homes.

Fire crews were able to get the blaze under control, and left the scene shortly before midnight. They returned at 8.30am on Sunday morning to re-inspect the land.

On Saturday night, Swanage Fire Station said: “This afternoon we attended a large field fire in Corfe Castle. The fire spread through the fields quickly making it difficult to extinguish.

“Crews from other stations came to assist and we managed to get the fire under control.”

Following the incident, Swanage Railway Station advised that they would be stopping their steam trains until further notice, and would be running diesel services only.

They said in a tweet: “Due to the ongoing hot, dry conditions, plus a fire near our line today, we've decided to run diesel services only until further notice. We'll review the situation & update daily.”