Former car showroom gutted in huge blaze
THE old Carcraft showroom has been destroyed by a huge fire.
Firefighters battled overnight on Wednesday to tackle the blaze at the Castleton building.
At its height 30 firefighters were on the scene, huge plumes of smoke were seen billowing from the site and neighbouring residents were advised to keep their windows closed.
And it’s now emerged last week residents, councillors and police discussed safety worries over the Nixon Street site, which has been vandalised repeatedly since it closed last April.
Fears the derelict building could catch fire were raised at last Tuesday’s meeting of Castleton Area Forum, where it was also revealed it had been targeted by burglars.
Ward councillor Billy Sheerin said: “We were worried about a fire - and then this happened.
“This has been a big issue for the people of Castleton in the past. We had the historic Dunlop Mill fire in 1960 in which one man tragically lost his life, which was followed by a major fire at Woolworth’s in 1971.
“When you have people breaking into these places there is always a concern that they will leave something that could cause a fire and it is a very worrying thought.
“This was a very major incident and the fire brigade coped extremely well with it.
“We should be grateful that no one was seriously hurt.”
The cause of the blaze is not yet known.
A Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said the building, which also used to house an Asda, store was left in a ‘very dangerous state’.
They added it would be some time before the site was safe enough to launch the ‘protracted and thorough’ investigation needed to establish the cause.
Six fire engines attended the blaze, which broke out at around 7pm, using water from the nearby Rochdale Canal to extinguish the flames.
Foul-smelling fumes were emitted from the scene and Coun Sheerin, along with Coun Jean Hornby, visited the nearby Carders Court care home advising residents to close windows to help them stay safe.
Officers remained on the scene into Thursday evening.
Carcraft was once the UK’s seventh largest second-hand dealership, with an annual turnover of £120m.
It closed last spring due to financial difficulties, leaving thousands of customers out of pocket and 500 people unemployed.
Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service has also been in touch with the landlord of the site and a meeting has been held with a demolition contractor.