Residents evacuated at Stapleford flat blaze
Around 20 people were evacuated from a large fire that broke out in a block of flats in Stapleford at around 5.40am on 29th April.
The fire started in a first floor flat. A couple and a 3 year old girl were taken to a local hospital to receive treatment for smoke inhalation. One other person required hospital treatment for minor injuries.
Firefighters spent several hours tackling the blaze. Residents in nearby flats were evacuated as a precaution.
The British Red Cross arrived at the property to provide temporary shelter for residents until a structutal engineer has assessed the extent of the damage.
Fire destroys Sheffield Ski Village
The Sheffield Ski Village complex has suffered severe damage after a huge blaze broke out on 29th April at around 1am.
25 Firefighters arrived at the scene just off Vale Road, to find the main building, which is a wooden structure, in flames.
Stuart Nicholson from the fire service said: “We suspect acetylene cylinders are inside the building but we have not confirmed yet if we have been able to put water on the cylinders. We are pumping around 3,000 litres of water per minute onto the fire from the River Don and have all but extinguished the flames. There is very little remaining of the building. It could be a further 24 hours before we can get closer to the site to carry out our investigation because of the risk of cylinders being involved in fire.”
It is thought that no one was on sight at the time of the fire. A safety cordon was set up around the area due to fears of acetylene cylinder explosions.
It is not yet known how the fire started but a full investigation will now be carried out.
Fire at Witton metal factory
More than 40 firefighters attended a large fire at the Timet UK metal factory in Witton at around 8am on 11th April.
Crews from Perry Barr, Erdington, Ward End, Bournbrook, Highgate, Wednesbury and Sheldon community fire stations were sent to the scene.
The fire is thought to have started in the basement of the two-storey factory.
No one was believed to be inside the building and the cause of the fire is currently unknown.
Historic 17th century thatched barn destroyed in fire
A large blaze has destroyed a historic 17th century thatched barn in Denchworth, South Oxfordshire.
Local residents described the blaze that broke out at around 3am on 11th March as “horrific”.
70 firefighters attended the fierce blaze trying desperately to prevent the flames from spreading to neighbouring homes. Many trees were cut down to stop the fire spreading further.
The flames were so severe that at one point firefighters were unable to walk past the buildings due to the intense.
The barn was part of the Denchworth Manor which is a Grade II listed building. It was recently sold by Savills UK for around £4.75m.
Eye witness, Rosemary Jones said: “It was horrific when we looked out the window and saw the flames going up, especially as we live in a thatched building.”
Mike Jones, added: “We were concerned about it spreading until we spoke to the fire chief and they said it was under control. But if the wind had been up and coming from that direction everyone would have had a problem.”
Another local resident from Denchworth said: “It was one hell of a blaze. I was standing 200 yards away and I could feel the heat. From what I could see the firefighters could not put it out, but they contained it from getting to the manor house or any other buildings. They did a great job. But they were beautiful, elegant thatched barns with a lot of history and significance to this village. It is a disaster to this area.”
During the fire, electricity pylons were damaged, cutting power to the community for over an hour.
David Heycock, Fire service group manager said: “The spread of the fire was so quick we were unable to prevent the loss of the building.”
An investigation into the cause of the fire will be carried out.
100 firefighters called to Glasgow blaze
More than 100 firefighters were called in to tackle a huge fire at a former Co-Operative Funeral Service building in Glasgow.
The fire broke out at the Morrison Street building at around 1.50pm on 28th November. Two buildings in the structure have been “gutted” with no floors from ground to the fifth level remaining. The third building was partially damaged.
A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council said: “This is now a dangerous building, and our building control team are now looking to speak to the building owners and their representatives to take the situation forward.”
At the height of the blaze, flames were reported to reach around 100ft into the air. Many neighbouring buildings had to be evacuated but residents were able to return to their properties later that night.
A spokesman for Strathclyde Fire and Rescue said: “Firefighters are continuing dampening down operations at the Morrison Street incident. At present, we have one aerial rescue pump, one pump and two ground monitors working at the scene.
A full investigation into the cause of the fire will be carried out.