Dear Sir
The lighting of any kind of bonfire can be lethal in these drought conditions and should be considered an act of criminal negligence, especially in the environs of our town, so vulnerable to conflagration. Even barbecues ought to be treated as potential fire-bombs and used with care and suitable precaution.
The lighting of fires is prohibited in all Mediterranean countries between May and September – as I once learned to my cost. Within minutes of lighting cut brushwood on our one-time farm in Umbria, three helicopters arrived overhead, one a police unit with a warrant for my arrest. I had to play the part of the innocent and ignorant Englishman – and pay a greatly reduced fine.
Yours
John Howlett
Perhaps some of the people persistently lighting fires down the Rye Harbour Road, presumably for ‘industrial’ reasons, could take note. Besides the risks mentioned in the article, great clouds of black smoke are anti-social.