A HUGE fire which damaged large areas of land in the New Forest is being treated as a suspected arson.

More than 40 firefighters tackled the blaze this morning in an area of gorse near Holbury.

Fire bosses say around 35 hectares of land was damaged in the blaze, which began around 12.15am yesterday.

Crews from across Hampshire, including Hythe, Beaulieu, Hardley, Burley, Lyndhurst, Eastleigh, Brokenhurst, Totton, Ringwood and Redbridge all attended the fire and spent around three hours bringing the fire under control.

The stop message came in at 3.25am, though crews remain on scene alongside the Forestry Commission damping down.

MORE TO FOLLOW..