Dog walker shocked at lit tea lights discovery in Forest

A STUDENT said he was shocked and dismayed to find lit tea lights at the foot of a tree at a Brockenhurst beauty spot.

Remi Bennett was walking his dog in an area between the school and Burley Road when he spotted a number of candles in a stream and strewn about the bank.

He collected them in a bag he was carrying, but was shocked to find lit tea lights nestled between some tree roots.

“I was absolutely livid – this was in the middle of summer when it is bone dry,” said Remi, a 21-year-old who is studying at the University of Hull.

“This is just so dangerous and could also do serious damage to the Forest.”

His father, David, added that he thought it was “complete madness”. He said: “Fifty-one years in the Forest and that’s a new – and dangerous – one on me.

“It could have caused a serious fire, surrounded by dry grass and vegetation, let alone damage to the tree.”

A Forestry England spokesperson said it had advised the local keeper to keep a lookout for similar instances.

She added: “We have public information campaigns across the Forest reminding people about fire safety, especially during the summer when the risks of wildfires are high.

“Fires can start in the Forest for a number of reasons. People are often genuinely shocked by the scale of the risks even small barbecues or fires can pose.

“Placed directly on the ground they can burn and damage the Forest floor, and in peaty or dry areas heat can travel down through the earth undetected and pop up some distance away, or travel up into a tree through its roots to start a fire.

“To help us protect the Forest from risks like these we are asking visitors to help us by following our fire safety code.”