SOME 25 firefighters were tackling a reed bed fire raging across five acres alongside River Teign outside Shaldon this afternoon (Tuesday Oct 2) .

Efforts were being made to prevent the flames spreading to a group of cottages near the source of the blaze not far from Coombe Cellars.

Two crews from Teignmouth rushed to the scene just before 3pm when the smoke could be seen from as far away as Haytor.

One stroller on the moor said: ‘I could see the smoke in the distance from the upper car park. It looked pretty serious, even thought it was miles away. I could even see the flames.’

Crews from Newton Abbot and Torquay were also called to tackle the inferno together with a water carrier team from the Bay.

A fire spokesman said: ‘We are concentrating our efforts on stopping the flames spreading in the direction of some cottages.’