100 firefighters tackle blaze in Hereford

Thursday 21st October 2010, 11:29AM BST.

Fire crews ut out a fire in the Card Factory shop. The blaze also affected the River Island and Phone 4U shops in High Town, Hereford.

More than 100 firefighters tackled a major blaze which spread through three city centre buildings in Hereford.

West Mercia Police, which was alerted to the fire just after 4.35am, said several roads in the High Town area of the city had been closed to protect the public.

A police spokesman said: “Substantial fire damage has been caused and emergency services are now trying to prevent further damage to the buildings affected and surrounding areas.”

Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service said more than 20 appliances were tackling the blaze, which also caused smoke damage to two other buildings.

Firefighters used two aerial ladder platforms and a water carrier to tackle the flames and bring the fire under control.

Bus services in the city have been disrupted and roads which have been closed include Union Street, St Peter’s Street, Offa Street and St Peter’s Square.

A thorough search of the damaged buildings is being carried out and as far as police can tell, no one has been injured.

Meanwhile, officials at Herefordshire Council have pledged to support businesses affected by the fire by helping them find alternative premises.

Council officials were trying to identify potential properties for temporary or permanent occupation.

By Peter Kitchen

1
David Clark

October 21, 2010 at 19:34

My goodness, what sub wrote that photo caption?

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- Andrew Owen
  
  October 21, 2010 at 19:54
  
  Quite right. We’ll have him shot.
  
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