Huge fire rages next to homes
A WOMAN has described the terrifying moment she woke up and saw a huge fire raging yards from her home.
Margaret Yonar awoke to what sounded like ‘an explosion’ outside her home in Ince-in-Makerfield, Wigan, shortly after 3am yesterday. When she looked out of her window, she was faced with ‘a big ball of flames’.
“It was terrifying,” she said. “It looked like it was right next to my fence. I was worried it was going to spread to the house, so I rang 999.”
Dozens of firefighters rushed to the tackle the blaze, which involved several vehicles, in an open yard off Moat House Street.
As the flames took hold, they engulfed an outbuilding, piles of tyres – and at least one HGV.
At its height, the fire measured around 30m by 20m, with crews using four jets and a hose to target specific sectors of the fire.
Smoke could be seen billowing across nearby streets, which led to the fire service warning residents to keep their windows and doors shut. Ms Yonar said: “Some of the fire was landing in my garden. I thought we might end up being evacuated.
“I couldn’t get back to sleep, I had to keep my eye on it. I have had to ring in sick at work this morning.”
As fire crews fought the blaze, a section of the A577 Manchester Road, a major route between Wigan and Hindley, was closed.
Firefighters eventually managed to bring the fire under control and Manchester Road was reopened at 10.30am.
Station manager Chris Evans, in charge at the scene, said: “We’re now utilising a digger provided by Wigan council to move around 20-30 tonnes of tyres and gain access to the remaining pockets of fire.”