Jennie Franklin, 63, who lives on the edge of the heath, told the BBC: “We smelled smoke, came outside and saw the plume.”
She said the sun had “gone a weird orange colour because of the smoke”, adding: “The smell was awful, the air was filled with black smoke and then the smell was really strong.
“We had to keep a very close eye on it. I wouldn’t say it was scary but it got to a point where we started making plans [to leave] in case but, thankfully, it didn’t come to that.”