VISITORS heading to some of Herefordshire's beauty spots over the bank holiday weekend are being told not light barbecues due to an increased risk of fire spreading.

Herefordshire Wildlife Trust which manages some of the county's nature reserves, including Queenswood Country Park between Hereford and Leominster, said there has been some "devastating effects" from barbecues across the UK.

They said: "Please can we ask visitors not to use barbecues at Queenswood Country Park or any other of our nature reserves around the county this weekend.

"This period of extended dry weather means there is an increased fire risk and there have been some devastating effects seen already in other parts of the UK."

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It comes as firefighters in Herefordshire plea to residents not to leave fires unattended.

Hereford Times:

On Friday, two crews from Bromyard Fire Station (pictured above) were called to tackle an out-of-control bonfire near Whitbourne which had then spread to a neighbour's shed.

"The fire spread to the fence first, then the wood pile, before getting to the shed (pictured below). It burnt the roof off before it could be extinguished," the station said after being called at 12.43pm.

"Crews used two jets with water supplied from their portable pump which pumped water from a near by stream.

"Don't leave fires unattended."

Hereford Times: