Transcript Historical Minute Book 1952 to 1965 - Ashdown Forest

The Clerk informed the Board that he had taken up the matter prior to the last meeting in February and had
received a reply stating that the reason for the untidy appearance was due to work in progress on the erection of
new buildings and that when the works were completed, the whole area would be tidied up. He had since received a
letter from the East Sussex County Council enclosing a copy of a letter they had also written to the Ministry of
Housing and Local Government on instructions of the County Planning Committee asking that this matter should
be dealt with as soon as possible.
B. The Chairman informed the meeting that there were a number of dangerous bends on the road to Fairwarp and
that he had had the gorse and bracken cut on several of these by the Rangers and that this work was
continuing.[signed] S.J. Marsh.
A Meeting of the Special Purposes Committee duly convened and held at The Village Hall, Forest Row,
on Wednesday the 27th Hay, 1953 at 2.30 p.m.
Colonel R.S. Clarke M.P., Lt. Comdr. H.R. Hardy, Messrs. S.J. Marsh, J.R. Owen J.P., G.A. Warburton and Mr.
Francis Mees (Chief Officer East Sussex Fire Brigade).
1. The Minutes of the last Meeting of the Special Purposes Committee as printed and circulated were taken as read
and signed.
2. The Meeting was convened to meet Mr. Mees to discuss the ways and means of combating Forest Fires.
Mr. Mees produced a plan showing the various sites at which the Forest Fires occurred.
3. Colonel Clarke brought to the notice of the Meeting that a considerable number of the sites shown on the plan
were not on Forest land.
4. It was agreed that the original estimate of the cost of these fires, namely £3,000 was incorrect so far as Ashdown
Forest was concerned.
5. The origin of the fires was discussed and various opinions were given as to the cause, and it was agreed, that
many were started maliciously.
6. With regard to the methods of combating fires Mr. Mees stated that the Fire Brigade had tried controlled burning
on Chailey Common and that it was not successful. He thought that unless the original causes of the fires could be
stopped, then the cutting of fire breaks seemed the only deans of confining them.
7. Lt. Comdr. Hardy proposed that the Forest should be surveyed and that the danger spots should be protected by
fire breaks cut by machinery.
8. The Chairman thought that this method, apart from being very expensive, would be very difficult and he was
doubtful if a machine would pass over the rough and uneven surface of the Forest.
9. The Chairman was of the opinion that it was not necessary for the Fire Brigade to turn out in full force far every
call for a Forest Fire and proposed that if two men in a Land Rover with radio communications to Head Quarters
answered the call they would find in many instances they could handle the outbreak efficiently themselves and thus
save the considerable expense of a full Brigade turn out.
10. Mr. Mees proposed that if the householders ware allowed and advised to cut fire breaks for a good distance
around their property, they would no doubt feel safe and for this reason refrain from calling out the Brigade
unnecessarily.
If racks of fire brooms were placed at various points on the Forest it would be of great assistance.
11. The Chairman replied that the Rangers held stocks of these brooms and at one time there were racks at certain
stations on the Forest. They would consider if this system should be brought into force again.