Where is Saddleworth Moor? Fire map and areas affected, from Carrbrook and Stalybridge to Dove stone and Buckton Vale
A HUGE wildfire burning for six days on Saddleworth Moor has closed schools and forced families from their homes.
Here's all you need to know about where the fire is burning and which places are under threat from spreading flames.
Where is Saddleworth Moor?
Saddleworth Moor is an area of upland in the Pennine hills to the east of Manchester.
It rises to more than 1,300ft above Dove Stone Reservoir and overlooks the towns of Stalybridge and Oldham.
Historically Saddleworth was in the West Riding of Yorkshire but it became part of Greater Manchester in 1974.
The wild moorland became famous after Moors Murderers Ian Brady and Myra Hindley killed and buried their child victims there in the 1960s.
It was also the site of a 1949 plane crash when a DC-3 passenger aircraft came down on approach to Manchester Airport, killing 24.
In December 2015 the discovery of a pensioner's body on the moor sparked an international mystery.
The OAP, dubbed Neil Dovestone until he was later identified as David Lytton, had travelled 200 miles from London before lying down to die on a path.
When and where did the Saddleworth Moor wildfire start?
Firefighters were called to a wildfire on the moor near Buckton Vale at 8.19pm on June 24.
They worked with a local gamekeeper to put out the flames in a couple of hours.
But amid a scorching heatwave, dry grass reignited and now emergency crews are battling to contain fire in several locations across Saddleworth Moor.
New fires are said to have broken out in the area between the town of Stalybridge and the Dove Stone Reservoir beauty spot.
Residents were warned to keep windows and doors shut because of choking smoke that is filling the air for miles around.
On June 26 the fire was declared a major incident as it continued to rage and the army was put on standby to help.
Locals and workers in the moorland area have accused off-road bikers of deliberately starting the fire.
A source told The Sun: “Everyone up here is blaming bikers for starting the fire. A gamekeeper had a row with them about going on private land before the fire started.
“Tensions are running high and people are saying the police need to get to the bikers before the landowners and gamekeepers do.”
Locals claim scrambler bikers riding the moorland on Sunday triggered the initial fire near to Buckton Hill, which lies above the area.
And The Peak District Moorland Group posted on Facebook: “Gamekeepers put out a fire on Sunday evening believed to be in connection with illegal off road bikes having forced entry to private land.
“It appears that due to the conditions, the peat was smouldering underground which then reignited on Monday.”
Where has the blaze spread to?
About 100 homes were evacuated as the fire spread to 3.7 miles.
Four schools have also been closed and a GP said he had seen patients with nosebleeds, coughs and eye problems caused by the smoke.
No injuries had been reported by Wednesday morning and everyone was accounted for.
However firefighters continue to tackle the fierce blaze and have warned it could last "for weeks".
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The task has been made more difficult by the continuing hot weather and the hard-to-reach terrain away from roads and water mains.
Low lying smoke gathered in residential streets in Carrbrook, Greenfield, Buckton Vale, Saddleworth and Stalybridge.
A number of schools have been closed including Buckton Vale Primary School, Millbrook Primary School and Mossley Hollins High School.
The situation worsened on Saturday, June 30 as two large-scale fires on the moor converged.
Fires on Winter Hill and Horrocks Farm at Scout Road are now being treated as one incident.
Firefighters declared it a "major incident".