A “devastating” wildfire in the New Forest, in Hampshire, is now under control, but firefighters say they will still be working for several days to come.

The wildfire began when a van caught fire on the A31 near Bratley Wood shortly after 17:20 BST on Sunday, forcing motorists to abandon more than 20 vehicles.

The area hit by the fire is protected heathland and home to a number of rare species, the New Forest National Park Authority said.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service on Monday evening asked the public to avoid the area and said it was working “into the night”. National Highways said the A31 dual carriageway through the New Forest would remain closed until further notice.

“We expect to have a significant presence for several days, as we work to protect this beautiful part of the New Forest,” said the fire service.

Aerial footage of scorched vegetation showed how the fire funnelled outwards in a south-easterly direction as the wind fanned the flames.

Smoke from the blaze could be seen drifting across both sides of the Solent, prompting fire to urge people to keep doors and windows shut.

New Forest National Park Authority warned the impact on the forest ecosystem and rare species would be severe.

“It’s rare heathland, which globally is more rare than rainforest,” a spokesperson said.

“We have the highest concentration of lowland heathland in western Europe and it’s internationally protected.

“It is home to all six UK native reptiles, Dartford warblers, nightjars, insects – it’s devastating.”

Gillie Molland, lead ranger for the park authority, told PA it will take “many years” for the area to recover.

Lindsey Legg, who was with her husband and three children when they were forced to stop by police and leave their car, said: “We started seeing people abandoning their cars. Women and children were walking with buggies.”

She told BBC Radio Solent: “Police told us ‘you can’t go any further’. We realised the fire was going through the field – it was pretty scary.

“We had to abandon the car and cross the central reservation to get away from the side of the fire. We thought the car was going to go up at one point.”

National Highways said there was significant damage to the road surface and crash barrier following the fire and oil spillage from the burnt out vehicle.

It added there was no estimated time for reopening the road, which is a main tourist route to Dorset and south-west England.

Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service, aided by neighbouring services, initially scrambled 26 fire engines and four water carriers after receiving 160 emergency calls.

In a statement on Monday afternoon, it said more than 120 firefighters were on the scene, with 10 fire engines and 13 off-road vehicles in attendance.

The fire service said an 5-mile (8km) hose had been laid from Hightown Lake, just east of Ringwood, to supply water to crews tackling the blaze.

The fire is beginning to have an effect on the hospitality trade, one cafe owner in the area told the BBC on Monday.

“Lyndhurst itself is very quiet today,” Jo Cowley said.

“It’s a big tourist road, the A31. I think it probably will affect us for most of the week.

“There’s a lot of HGVs, a lot of vans passing through. We’re getting customers in, but it’s nowhere near the customers you would expect.

“We’ve had deliveries that are two or three hours late. It’s gridlock out there.”

Long periods of hot and dry weather have seen wildfires break out across the UK this summer.

Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service declared a major incident on Sunday as two fires in woodland caused a large emergency response.

It comes as drought officials have declared 71.3% of England is now in drought, after the nation recorded its driest July since records began in 1836.

The East Midlands, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire, Kent and Sussex, and Solent and the South Downs moved into drought status on Monday, joining half of England and the whole of Wales.

The National Drought Group – made up of regulators, government officials, water companies and agricultural bodies – made the decision after a meeting on Monday.

A total of 45 million people are now living in a drought area in England, with more than 27 million facing water use restrictions.