“We have a fire and rescue service across the country that isn’t properly set up to deal with these incidents,” Burnham said.

“We don’t have the capability in the way that we should have to fight these fires.

“There’s thousands of firefighters out there today doing back-breaking work, in full kit, in the most difficult conditions”, he added.

He said the UK must face up to the “changing climate” and transition to “more clean energy”.

His comments came ahead of the appointment of Baroness Blake of Leeds as fire minister.

Friends of the Earth urged the prime minister to tackle the “root cause” of the “climate emergency” that is fuelling this summer’s extreme weather events.

“Without urgent action to curb the carbon emissions driving this crisis, future heatwaves, droughts and wildfires will only get worse and the ability for future generations to adapt will disappear” the environmental group warned.

Burnham was speaking during a visit to Stourbridge to see the impact of a devastating blaze.

As the UK experienced its hottest day of the year on Thursday, residents fled their homes when fires spread through dry grass and tore through houses.

West Midlands Ambulance Service said it treated 54 casualties at eight different fires across the region. Nineteen people were taken to hospital for treatment.

In 2025, fire and rescue services in England and Wales broke a new record when they responded to nearly 1,000 wildfire incidents, with the NFCC warning at the time that climate change is increasing their risk and severity.

The conditions the UK is experiencing so far this summer also mirror the warnings given by climate scientists that human-induced climate change would lead to more frequent and intense heatwaves, as well as potential summer droughts.

In England, the Rugby Football Union has delayed the start of the community rugby season because of concerns about player welfare and pitch conditions because of the drought conditions.