A BRAVE taxi driver said he was 'no hero' after he banged on doors to wake people as an intense fire roared across a cornfield and threatened to consume their homes.
Maz Shakil was working, heading towards Malvern with a fare, when he and his passenger noticed the fierce glow of the fire in Powick - and decided to help.
The 30-year Woober taxi driver helped residents during the Powick field fire as the inferno raged in the direction of homes.
He had been about to drop off a passenger when he stopped the meter as he and his passenger rushed to help before the fire service arrived. A 999 call came in at around 11.46pm and firefighters successfully stopped the inferno from spreading to homes on the edge of the field.
"I said to him let's go and check it out, it's really bad. He said 'yeah, let's go'. I stopped the meter and we parked on the side of the road. I could see the flames intensifying.
"It felt like being in an oven. I couldn't breathe and inhaling the smoke was horrible. We had to get people out otherwise it would have been disastrous."
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He and his passenger - and others in the village - banged on doors and windows to wake people up as the fire roared across a cornfield in Old Malvern Road in Powick.
He added: "We started going around knocking doors. It was so bad. It could have been a disaster.
"Everyone started coming out because of the banging noise. The fire was intensifying," he said.
He described banging on the window of the corner house shouting 'wake up!' and 'get out!'
Referring to his actions, he said: "I don't think it's heroic or anything like that. I think it's a normal thing I hope. I love to help. If I did something - a little something - to help these residents I feel great."
Four crews attended after a 999 call at 11.46pm – three from Worcester and one from Malvern plus the water carrier from Evesham, off-road vehicles from Wyre Forest and Malvern and the service drone and incident command unit from Ledbury.
Seven homes and 11 residents had to be evacuated as the fire ripped through 4.3 hectares of standing crop as firefighters used two extended hosereels with beaters to protect nearby properties.
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