The military has been called in to help battle huge moorland fires which have been raging for three days in Greater Manchester.
The blaze, which is said to have been caused by the hot weather, covers 4 miles (6.4km) of moorland above Stalybridge and prompted the evacuation of up to 100 homes, according to the BBC.
Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service have now confirmed they have asked for military assistance.
Greater Manchester's assistant chief fire officer Dave Keelan said said: "That's for help to move high-volume pumps and to transport personnel to remote locations.
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"We have been liaising with a military advisor on the scene and following those discussions we have requested military assistance from the Ministry of Defence."
Mr Keelan said that the military was likely to use Chinook helicopters to move two water pumps.
A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman confirmed the fire service had approached them 'as a priority' and the MoD was 'looking into what might be done'.
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United Utilities has also provided a helicopter to drop water on to hard-to-access areas of the fire.
Around 100 firefighters are said to be struggling to keep the blaze at bay. They have been deployed to four separate fronts in an area covering land across Saddleworth Moor.
According to the Telegraph, the blaze is the worst English wildfire in living memory which has left residents in Manchester struggling to breathe.
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The fire has been so bad that it can be seen all the way from NASA's satellites in space.
According to the Metro, the smoke plumes, which have spread to the centre of Manchester, could have a significant impact of people's health and people in affected areas were urged to keep their windows and doors closed.
Mr Keelan added: "We are working with our colleagues in health and we are sampling the air to make sure it is within those safe limits, and we will be informing people in local areas if there is any concern or we need them to do anything in particular.
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"There's still a lot of smoke from the fire but air quality levels are being monitored regularly in different locations. Air quality is currently at a safe level and therefore residents have been let back into their homes.
"However, the advice from Public Health England remains the same - if you are in an area of smoke please try and keep windows and doors closed and keep hydrated by drinking water, and if you have any health concerns contact the NHS 111 service."
Featured Image Credit: @K_J_DaveTopics: News, Fire, Community, UK