Shock as BMW goes up in flames outside shops
FLORIST SAID HE HEARD SOUND OF ‘TYRES EXPLODING’
RESIDENTS in Bulwell were left shaken after a car went up in flames in the town centre.
Emergency services were called to a vehicle fire in Main Street at around 11am yesterday and remained at the scene until the afternoon.
The road was closed off until around 1.30pm, forcing bus services to divert their routes.
Shazia Chundary, 27, manager at Barnardo’s in Main Street, witnessed the blaze.
She said: “The driver was right outside and was just shouting.
“I went outside to ask him what happened and all he said was ‘my car is on fire.’
“We all evacuated and it was all up in flames. Ten minutes later the fire brigade and the police came.
“It’s so scary, I’m so shaken. It was literally right outside. I hope he is OK.”
Another eyewitness, Rachael Cole, 33, manager at Nationwide Care Services, said she and her staff helped divert traffic as the incident unfolded.
“It has been a bit of a manic morning,” she said.
“Our HR who sits near the window saw the car pull up and it was in flames underneath the car.
“The gentleman who was in the car jumped out and ran down.
“I said to the girls, ‘everybody out the building straight away.’ It was literally directly outside the building.
“The flames just got worse and worse. We actually got on the road and diverted the traffic.
“It was scary. We came in after the fire had been put out and obviously you could smell a lot of petrol fumes in here and it was smoky so we had to air it all out.”
Ray French, 50, owner of French’s Flowers, added: “I went out the back – that was it.
“The fire brigade got here pretty quickly and the police got here quick. They blocked it off straight away.
“No-one was hurt, that’s the main thing. The tyres exploded – I knew it was the tyres just by the sound of it.”
A spokesperson for Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service said: “We were called at 10.54am to Main Street where one car was well alight.
“We left the incident at 12.07am after making the car safe.
“Two hose reels and two breathing apparatuses were used and crews from the Stockhill Fire Station attended.”
The flames just got worse and worse. We actually got on the road and diverted the traffic Rachael Cole