July 30, 2026

expert reaction to wildfires in Suffolk

Scientists comment on wildfires close to a nuclear power plant in Suffolk. 

Dr Thomas Smith, Associate Professor in Environmental Geography, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), said:

“The latest satellite imagery from NASA shows an active fire burning at Dunwich Heath that looks to have burnt 100-200 hectares (1-2 square kilometres) so far. Hotspots were first detected by a satellite overpass at around 7:30 pm yesterday (Wednesday), while the latest hotspots were detected by satellites passing over through the early hours of this morning (3 am to 7:30 am). The visible imagery from around 10:30 am this morning shows a smoke plume blowing out to sea with the westerly wind.

“The fire is currently around 3-4 km north of Sizewell B but is currently travelling east (as indicated by the smoke plume in the satellite imagery). The forecast is for a change in the winds later today to a northerly wind, which could help spread the fire further south if it is still burning into the evening. The fire is currently being sustained by very dry shrubby fuels on the heath. Fortunately, there is a lack of continuity in those fuels as we look further south. If there is further spread in the southwards direction, there are a number of breaks in the fuel that will help to slow or stop the spread of the fire.

“I don’t expect the fire to threaten the power plant. Firstly, the fire is located many kilometres away. Even if it were to spread further south, there is a large expanse of non-vegetated areas providing a buffer zone to the power plant buildings.

“Temperatures are forecast to drop substantially into this evening and tomorrow, with correspondingly higher relative humidity. This will further help to slow the spread of the fire and make the flames more manageable to suppress.”

Dr Zakary Campbell-Lochrie, Lecturer in Fire Science, University of Edinburgh, said:

“This is a challenging wildfire situation reflected in the Fire & Rescue Service’s declaration of a major incident. This wildfire is occurring at the same time as drought conditions have officially been declared in large parts of England including Suffolk. The hot, dry weather conditions, including the multiple heatwave events across much of the UK in recent weeks which lead to strong drying conditions for vegetation which can subsequently be highly susceptible to ignition and can present a much greater danger when fires do occur. As we’ve been seeing already the current weather conditions (e.g. wind direction and speed) will have a significant impact on the progression and impact of the fire and effectiveness of firefighting efforts. The likelihood and impact of wildfires in the UK varies not just with the weather but also varies greatly across different landscapes and vegetation types. The Suffolk wildfires are occurring in a heathland area, which represents a very important ecosystem type in the UK, and wildfires can have a serious impact on biodiversity and carbon storage in these areas, as well as potentially representing a significant risk to neighbouring communities and infrastructure.”

Comments on Nuclear Safety

Prof Joel Turner, Rolls-Royce Chair in Nuclear Fuel Technology, Dalton Nuclear Institute, University of Manchester, said:

“I have seen that the plant has reported it’s now at high alert. That would seem to be a very sensible precaution to protect the workers at the plant, and to be prepared to shut down the reactor if needs be. Stopping the nuclear reaction in the core is a case of dropping the control rods in (a SCRAM), which can be done very quickly (less than a second). Although that stops the plant producing meaningful power, the fuel will still be hot and would still require cooling for a long time. 

“In practice a SCRAM would likely only be done because it was unsafe to keep the plant fully staffed, rather than because of physical danger to the reactor itself. The primary issues physically will likely be around maintaining the plants connection to the power grid, which could cause problems in maintaining cooling if it were to be disrupted.  However, nuclear plants are built with many layers of safety redundancy, and are required to have detailed emergency plans in place for events such as this. There are multiple separate sets of pumps and cooling systems to cover that eventuality on-site, which will operate from diesel supplies if connection to the grid is disrupted.“

Prof Mike Bluck, Professor of Nuclear Engineering, Imperial College London, said:

“This is a fast-moving situation, currently the fire front is 3-4 miles from the site. The reactor site is on high alert, but as far as I can tell, it is otherwise unaffected.

“The fires are in the same area as Sizewell B, is there any risk the fires will get close to or damage the nuclear power station? If the fire does get closer to Sizewell B what contingency plans are in place? Sizewell B is sited on the coast and surrounded by rural land, so in principle the fire could approach the site. That said, the site itself is industrial, with large surrounding and penetrating roads which would act as a fire breaks. As with any nuclear site, it is designed to withstand a range of internal and external hazards, including fire. Its most recent fire inspection by the Office for Nuclear Regulation was in March 2024. Should the fire approach closer and there are specific concerns, the reactor can be shutdown. There will be a need to maintain reactor cooling for some time after this, but there are numerous defence-in-depth systems to ensure this. The reactor core sits within a 20 cm thick steel vessel, which is surrounded by a reinforced concrete containment. Breaching of the containment & pressure vessel is unimaginable. There maybe other critical facilities (eg used fuel storage facilities) which will need to be protected, but the site has a fully equipped fire-service and trained personnel.

“We are not alone in having these concerns. France have a number of nuclear power plants in proximity to wildfires (much more severe than ours) and there have been no incidents recorded.“

Comments on the wildfire

David Symons, Future Ready Leader at WSP, said:

“The Suffolk wildfires are a reminder that climate resilience is no longer just about flooding. As the UK experiences hotter, drier summers, the conditions that allow wildfires to spread are becoming more common, particularly in areas of heathland, woodland and grassland.

“What’s important is recognising that these events are part of a broader pattern of weather extremes. The same changing climate that can leave landscapes vulnerable to drought and wildfire can also bring periods of intense rainfall and flooding.

“The challenge now is ensuring our communities, infrastructure and emergency response systems are prepared for a wider range of risks. That means thinking about resilience in a more joined-up way, from land management and nature recovery through to the design and operation of critical infrastructure. Measures such as restoring peatlands, managing vegetation and creating strategic firebreaks can all help reduce wildfire risk, alongside wider efforts to adapt our landscapes and infrastructure to a changing climate.”

Declared interests

Dr Thomas Smith: “I have no competing interests.”

Dr Zakary Campbell-Lochrie: “no interests to declare for this.”

Prof Mike Bluck: “my role as Director of the Rolls-Royce Nuclear University Technology Centre.”

Prof Joel Turner: “I’m a Prof at Manchester University and receive funding from Rolls-Royce towards my position to run a research programme for them. I also have students funded by Westinghouse and Framatome. I run something called the SATURN CDT which is part supported from across the nuclear industry, including Sizewell C and EDF.”

For all other experts, no reply to our request for DOIs was received.