A FULL-scale alert was launched by the emergency services in response to reports of a strange smell in Padiham.

But an hour after the first 999 call, emergency services followed their noses and found the source of the problem - pig muck in a farmer's field.

Firefighters, police officers and members of the ambulance service were called out at 8.30pm on Wednesday after a resident in Waterside Mews reported a sulphur-like smell.

An incident support unit was called out and firefighters began searching rivers and business premises for a possible chemical leak as calls continued to come in from members of the public distressed by the strange pong.

One group of firefighters was sent out to explore nearby farms, and stumbled on the problem an hour after they set out, when they found a farmer spreading pig slurry on his land at High Whitaker Farm, near Grove Lane.

Officers said today they believed the cold night had caused the smell to settle at a low level, sparking the alarm among residents.

Nick Isherwood, station commander at Nelson fire station, was one of the people called to Padiham to investigate the curious smell.

He said: "We had at least three 999 calls and more were made to the other emergency services.

"We all based ourselves at Padiham fire station and different people started exploring possible sources of the smell. Our first thought was that it must be from a business premises using chemicals.

"All we can think of is that the cold night must have brought the smell down to earth, because the farmer had been muck spreading all day.

"He was packing up by the time we got there, so everything was all right. At least we can laugh about it now."

Leading firefighter Jimmy Edwards, from Padiham fire station, said: "We literally followed our noses to find the smell, because it just got stronger.

"The farmers wasn't doing anything wrong but we were glad he stopped because of the sheer volume of calls.

"But the smell will be hanging round the fire station for a while yet, because we had to drive one of the engines right through the slurry."