THE village of Thursley has been selected for the launch of Firewise, a major UK initiative to help householders protect their homes from wildfire.

The village was selected, because properties bordering Thursley Common were almost lost in a huge wildfire in 2006, which damaged 156 hectares of the National Nature Reserve and Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Appliances from West and East Sussex, Hampshire and Royal Berkshire, as well as Surrey, were deployed to the scene to battle the fire, which was declared a major incident and took five days to extinguish.

The Firewise scheme already operates successfully in 40 states across the United States to ensure neighbouring properties have the best protection in place. Now, Surrey Fire and Rescue Service has teamed up with Surrey County Council and Thursley Parish Council to launch the scheme in the UK.

For full story, see this week's Haslemere Herald.