Two teenagers have been arrested in connection with the fire that burned across Drummau Mountain above Skewen on Monday night, which police say was started deliberately.
South Wales Police said a 15-year-old boy from Neath Abbey has been arrested on suspicion of attempted arson with intent to endanger life.
A 17-year-old boy from Skewen has been arrested on suspicion of arson with recklessness as to whether life was endangered, and criminal damage to property, the force said.
Both were in police custody on Wednesday.
The fire took hold on the mountain on Monday evening and burned through the night, with flames visible above rooftops across the Neath Valley and Drummau Road closed. The fire service says it covered around 100 hectares of trees and scrubland.
‘Some of the most significant challenges our service has faced’
The arrests came as Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service set out the scale of what it called unprecedented demand, after weeks of major wildfires and serious property fires across its area.
The service said a critical incident team was established to manage the number of large-scale incidents crews were fighting simultaneously. It has since been stood down.
Chief Fire Officer Craig Flannery said recent weeks had presented “some of the most significant operational challenges our Service has faced in recent years”.
He said the willingness of communities to assist, “often at short notice and during difficult circumstances”, had played a significant role in helping crews respond effectively and safely.
Farmers won particular praise. The service said they made a significant contribution to containing and putting out wildfires, giving their time and their tractors, agricultural machinery and water tankers at vulnerable areas, while communities brought crews meals, refreshments, hygiene items and local knowledge.
Crews from the South Wales, North Wales and Lancashire fire services were drafted in under mutual aid, the service said, alongside both south Wales police forces, Natural Resources Wales, Public Health Wales and councils.
400 hectares at a single fire: the month the service has just had
The catalogue the service published shows how relentless August has been. The largest fire, at Llangynidr Reservoir near Ebbw Vale, covered around 400 hectares from 7 August and was fought with a specialist firefighting helicopter alongside fire engines, water bowsers and all-terrain vehicles.
Within a week, crews were stretched across three more fronts. Around 250 hectares burned at Rhandirmwyn with a Lancashire crew in support, while a 270-hectare fire at Nant Glas, near Llandrindod Wells, drew 15 fire engines.
A hillside fire at Talley near Llandeilo followed, then a wildfire near Morfa Bychan beach at Pendine that burned from 16 August.
A commercial property at Parkmill in Swansea was completely destroyed by fire on 14 August, the service said, and since Monday crews have also been at Glascwm, near Builth Wells, where around 90 hectares have burned.
The service says recent drought conditions and sustained warm, dry weather have left vegetation exceptionally dry and highly combustible, letting fires spread rapidly across large areas. A UK Government emergency alert warning of wildfire risk went to phones across Wales on 14 August.
While the unprecedented spell has eased, the service said crews continue to manage a number of ongoing incidents, monitoring conditions and tackling isolated hotspots.
The arrests follow a separate case a week ago in the same county: five teenagers appeared at Swansea Magistrates’ Court charged with arson over the fire that gutted the Grade II* listed Rheola House, between Glynneath and Resolven, on 18 August. That case continues.
Anyone with information about deliberate fire-setting can contact South Wales Police, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
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