End of live coverage
Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service, assisted by neighbouring services, initially scrambled 26 fire engines and four water carriers to the eastbound A31 after receiving 160 emergency calls reporting a van had caught fire on Sunday evening.
The fire service said the blaze spread from the vehicle to the central reservation before progressing into nearby heathland in a south-easterly direction towards Backley Bottom, and is in a “challenging rural location”.
An update released on Tuesday by the fire service said a change in wind direction had “provided a challenge” overnight but it was managing to prevent “spread and escalation” with the help of a police drone to prioritise hotspots and flare-ups.
The A31 – the main route through the New Forest – remains closed, with National Highways saying repairs needed to “significant” damage to the road surface, safety barriers and boundary fencing can only start once the fire is safely under control.
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