Soldiers and RAF to tackle fire near Saddleworth Moor
Media playback is unsupported on your deviceSoldiers and an RAF helicopter are due to arrive in Greater Manchester to help tackle the huge moorland fire that has raged for days.
About 100 troops from the 4th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland, were sent from their barracks in Catterick, North Yorkshire, overnight.
A Chinook helicopter will fly out of RAF Odiham, Hampshire, later to move water-pumping equipment by air.
Military help was requested to help battle the blaze near Saddleworth Moor.
About 60 firefighters worked overnight to subdue pockets of flames in the fire which had spread across 3.7miles (6km) of moorland above Stalybridge.
Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) has faced a catalogue of hurdles in trying to quell the blaze including frequent changes in wind direction, the heavy concentration of flammable peat in the ground and the tinder-dry foliage which has baked in searing temperatures.
The soldiers, who are due to arrive on Thursday morning, will be stationed at an Army training centre and are due to support the effort by managing water lines and assisting in fire beating.
Fire chiefs had asked the military to help move high-volume pump equipment by air to help douse the flames.
Dave Keelan, director of emergency response at GMFRS, said it had asked for assistance "to move some high volume pumps by air to locations that we couldn't get them to with vehicles".
Military intervention would also allow firefighters to access more remote areas "so we can get there quicker with more people with the water supplies we hope to put in place to try and resolve the incident in a quicker nature", Mr Keelan added.
He said transporting two of the high volume pumps to remote locations would give his crews an "excellent quantity of water with a nice main across a big area that we can tap into".
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Announcing the deployment of soldiers, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said: "I pay tribute to our armed forces' professionalism, dedication and sense of duty.
"They are proving once again that Britain can always depend on our troops to protect us no matter the time, no matter the place, and no matter the problem."
On Wednesday, firefighters had faced the arduous task of hauling pumps and hoses for up to two miles in blistering heat to reach parts of the fire.
Greater Manchester Police deployed a helicopter to assess the scene and United Utilities provided a helicopter to drop water on to remote areas.
The blaze has now entered its fourth day.
Having started on Sunday it was initially brought under control but reignited on Monday and has continued throughout the hot and dry weather this week.
About 150 people were forced to leave their homes in the village of Carrbrook on Tuesday evening as the fire encroached, with many staying with family and friends.
The majority had returned by Wednesday afternoon.
