CONES and tyres were set alight after a small controlled fire developed into a large blaze.

Crews from Bury, Whitefield and Leigh, were called to the fire at 4.40pm in Hudcar Lane, Bury, to reports of a small fire on Tuesday.

The fire started as a small amount of burning rubbish before it quickly developed, spreading to a nearby skip and storage container containing cones, barriers and tires.

Steve Wilcock, watch manager at Bury Fire Station, said: “We got the first call about a small fire before receiving several calls reporting loud explosions and a bigger fire.

“You could see the thick black smoke from all over Bury and when we got there it was very carbonaceous.

“They had been doing some controlled burning and believed they had extinguished the fire but a small ember blew into a skip and started burning again.

“I was explaining to the man that it only takes a little bit of ember and some wind to start again and that’s why people need to be extra cautious when putting out a fire.

“We heard several bangs when we were there from the tires.”

Firefighters spent an hour and a half extinguishing the blaze and no one was injured.

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service captured the fire on video.