It is thought that youths started a huge forest fire which decimated a large area of woodland to the south of Bracknell.
Over a hundred fire engines, together with helicopters were employed to fight the blaze. Traffic was disrupted as miles of roads had to be closed for days and bus routes had to be suspended. Fortunately no lives were lost, although the financial costs of fighting the fire, plus the costs to businesses disrupted by the incident were huge. Those youths who allegedly started the fire proved to be an immense drain on the community.