Fire rips through factory

Two fire crews from Telford and Wellington were alerted to a fire in a factory unit on Hortonwood 60 Telford just before 11pm last night.

On arrival the Officer in charge was faced with a severe fire in one section of the factory with flames coming out of the roof. More resources were requested as the fire started to spread.

Due to the nature of the contents of the factory the fire spread very quickly engulfing all parts of the factory. The fire crews immediate aim was to prevent the fire spreading to nearby factory units.

At one stage firefighters wearing breathing apparatus were able to enter the front office section of the factory and recover vital computer servers carrying important information about the business.

At the height of the blaze eight pumping fire appliances, two aerial appliances and several support appliances were needed, along with over 60 firefighters, to bring the fire under control.

Fire crews took approximately four hours to bring the fire under control, and crews will remain at the scene for several more hours damping down.

The cause of the fire is unknown at present, and fire investigation officers will attend the scene, as soon as it is safe to do so, to carry out investigations to establish the cause of the fire.

9th July, 2006