Huge fire near Bridgnorth destroys two businesses

More than 50 firefighters battled a blaze which ripped through outbuildings at a Shropshire farm destroying two businesses.

Firefighters from across Shropshire and the West Midlands were drafted in to help tackle the massive blaze at a fibreglass production business which then spread to a neighbouring firm which makes outdoor smoking shelters at Kings Nordley, near Bridgnorth, on Saturday.

Fire crews spent more than two hours at the scene and had to use water from a nearby pool in an attempt to douse the flames after the fire broke out at about 9am. The fire was under control by 11.16am.

Police also had to cordon off a small country lane leading to the warehouses to allow fire engines to get to the scene.

The fire started in the fibreglass business, called We Built It Ltd, one of the UK's largest manufacturers of domestic sewage treatment plants, and spread to a neighbouring workshop.

Incident commander John Griffiths said: "It is a small industrial site and a severe fire started in the fibre glass unit and it spread to the wood working business.

"Both units have been destroyed by the fire and the fire is believed to be accidental but investigations are ongoing to determine a cause.

"Ten fire fighting appliances attended from three different brigades from Shropshire, Hereford and Worcester and the West Midlands."

Mr Griffiths added that the Environment Agency was also called in a bid to prevent toxic water used to dose the flames at the fibreglass unit from entering a nearby pool which could have killed fish stocks.

"There were no injuries but there is substantial damage to the businesses which would have to be re-built," he said.

Two cars, a SLK Mercedes Benz and a Volkswagen Beetle, were also destroyed in the fire.

Dave Thompson, owner of We Build It Ltd, said he was in shock over the fire and added his business was completely destroyed.

"We are not 100 per cent sure what happened. But one of the lads mixed something in a bucket and there was a bit left over and it self combusted and caught something else," he said.

"There's nothing left and now we are going to have to start some damn hard work to get it back."

The owner of the outdoor smoking shelter company, who did not want to be named, said that his workshop was "completely destroyed".

By Jason Lavan