A controlled burn in Culcheth prompted a fire crew call-out after smoke spread across a nearby road and affected visibility. Whatever the original plan, once smoke is wandering into traffic, it stops being a tidy bit of land management and starts becoming a proper safety concern.
Fire crews attending was the right outcome. Reduced visibility on local roads is not something to shrug off, particularly around a village where drivers already have enough to contend with, from tight stretches and parked cars to the occasional motorist treating a 30mph limit as decorative bunting.
Controlled burns can have a legitimate purpose, and nobody is suggesting every puff of smoke deserves a blue-light procession. But they need careful timing, supervision and consideration for weather conditions. Culcheth is quite capable of producing enough drama without a roadside fog machine joining in.
The important point is that the incident was dealt with and the risk to road users was taken seriously. A little more planning before lighting up would be preferable to requiring firefighters to sort out the aftermath.