Major fire closes opticians
Smoke spread through shops and flats
SIX fire engines and 35 firefighters tackled a fire in the Vision Express shop in Ruislip High Street.
According to London Fire Brigade, the alarm was raised by people in a neighbouring shop who noticed smoke pouring into the front of their own property on Monday, February 22.
The damage to the shop means it will be closed for repairs.
A temporary shop has been opened a few doors away in the former Greggs.
When the first fire crew arrived, they discovered the fire at the back of the shop with the blaze spreading to a flat above.
The shop and flat were both reportedly left severely damaged by the fire, but LFB confirmed that there were no injuries and nobody was inside at the time.
Daniel Hardman, who witnessed the fire, said: “Caffe Nero had smoke inside and a hose was going through Baskin-Robbins next door.
“All the flats above had smoke in them too and there were loads of fire engines around, I couldn’t make out where the fire was coming from. Firefighters had to break through the door at Vision Express to get in.”
London Fire Brigade was called at 7.20pm, with the fire being brought under control by 10.56pm.
Firefighters from Hillingdon, Ruislip, Harrow, Southall, Wembley, Hammersmith and Stanmore fire stations attended the scene, with the cause of the fire currently under investigation.
A smoke alarm was said to have been fitted, but it is not known if it operated.
A Vision Express spokesperson said that a temporary store will be set up after the Ruislip branch went up in flames.
They said: “The Ruislip store will remain closed while the cause is determined and the store is refurbished.
“We are intending to opening a temporary Vision Express store to enable us to continue to look after our customers.
“Meanwhile the nearest Vision Express stores can be found at St George’s in Harrow and at The Pavilions centre in Uxbridge, where appointments for eye tests can be booked.”