Fire!

I was only popping out quickly to the local shop and didn't even have my compact camera with me. Then I noticed a massive pall of black smoke rising a few roads away. No time to fetch my camera, I just had to use my phone.

The fire was on the site of a garage and garden machinery workshop, just behind this house. The residents were still there: I'm a little surprised the fire brigade didn't move them out as a precaution, because there were gas cylinders on site which could potentially have done a lot of damage if they exploded. By the time I moved on there were at least six appliances there and there were still sirens in the distance as other vehicles approached. There was also a helicopter above surveying the scene.

I couldn't see the firemen actually working on the fire, but those off the site (like the two here strolling along the road) all seemed very calm. They do a remarkable job.