As climate change increases the risk of wildfire in the UK, firefighters will use new techniques this summer that they have learned in the worst wildfire hotspots in the world.
Numerous fires started during the heatwaves of last year, with one in east London's Wennington even destroying homes.
Numerous grass fires have already occurred this year, including one of the largest to ever occur in the UK, which has been burning in the Scottish Highlands for the past two weeks.
The US and southern Europe are now being taught more to fire crews during training.
Fire chiefs are particularly interested in increasing the number of specialized teams trained in "burn suppression" techniques, which involve purposefully setting fire to land to keep a fire contained.
Currently, only five UK units from among more than 50 fire and rescue services are experts in "fighting fire with fire," mostly in moorland regions.
The National Fire Chiefs Council's (NFCC) wildfire lead, Chief Fire Officer Paul Hedley, however, declared that more units - including those in services that cover both urban and rural areas - would receive training in innovative wildfire fighting techniques.
In the event of a significant fire, he said, they could then be deployed nationally.
The risk and threat of such large wildfires, he continued, was "clearly growing in the UK.".
This is a very sensible way to try to put us ahead of the curve, he said, "learning from international partners who are probably still some years ahead of us.".
As part of a national action plan developed in response to the lessons learned from the fires last year, it is hoped that a training program will be established across the UK. .
Surrey Fire and Rescue, which has already put out more than 80 wildfires this year, is one of the services paving the way.
The most recent wildfire occurred at Frensham Common, close to Farnham, a well-liked tourist destination, last month.
The 10-hectare fire's origin is unknown, but the damage is obvious.
Rich heathland that was once the habitat for rare species like sand lizards is now a desolate wasteland.
When the BBC arrived, volunteers from the Amphibian and Reptile Conservation charity were searching the scorched earth for animals that had survived the fire while stretched out in a line akin to a police forensics team.
The long-term effects are just as worrisome as the immediate impact.
"While some of these animals that survived the fire can be saved, we lose a lot and all that biodiversity. For that to come back again, it takes years, if not decades, according to trustee Howard Inns. .
It's difficult for rural ranger Darren Hill, who helped firefighters fight this fire, to see the damage and realize that more wildfires might be coming. .
It does take a toll, he said, to return to a location like this and realize that I discovered this species here while we had smooth snakes there.
Matt Oakley, a fire investigations officer for Surrey Fire and Rescue, is in the midst of scanning the area for concealed subterranean burns using a drone equipped with thermal imaging.
He is a member of the UK's national wildfire tactical advisors, a team of specialized officers who have already acquired the necessary knowledge from other countries and who will be instructing units.
According to him, the UK will need to employ strategies similar to those he has seen employed in hotspots as far-flung as South Africa and France in the years to come.
Our climate, he said, "is changing—it's changing beyond recognition.". "What was a nine to twelve year cycle is now an annual occurrence.
Within the next ten years, the southeast of England will experience a northern Mediterranean climate; for us, this is just another day at the office.
Many of the wildfire-fighting strategies being implemented in the UK rely on a "toolbox" of abilities, from building natural firebreaks and lowering the "fuel-load" of vegetation to setting controlled burns on purpose to contain wildfires.
Together, they could lessen the amount of water that would be required during a drought and the number of appliances that would be required on the property.
But the Fire Brigades Union claims that in order to address the growing problems caused by climate change, new training and techniques are insufficient. It claims that additional crews are required as a result of years of budget cuts that resulted in the deaths of thousands of firefighters since 2010.
Increasing temperatures and the government's systematic underfunding of the fire and rescue service are a recipe for destruction, according to Matt Wrack, general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union. ".
According to the government, it will give fire and rescue agencies about £2.16 billion this year, and each agency will be free to choose how it will use that money.
The Home Office collaborates closely with the National Fire Chiefs Council and the England and Wales Wildfire Forum to continue to enhance our response to wildfires and mitigate them, according to a spokesperson.
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