Arson suspected as cause of ‘large fire’ at school site
A blaze that ripped through a disused Warmley school is being treated as arson.
Crews from 11 fire stations attended a large blaze in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Residents in Warmley said they were alerted to the fire by smoke billowing from the site of the former Grange School on Tower Road North, at around 1am on Tuesday morning.
The neighbouring Digitech Studio School and Warmley Park School and College were closed on Tuesday, following advice from the police.
Posting on a local Facebook group, one resident said there were “lots of blue lights” while another commented: “Smell of smoke woke me up around 1.15 and spent last hour watching the neighbourhood like a hawk.”
A statement from Avon Fire and Rescue read: “Crews from Kingswood, Hicks Gate, Temple, Bedminster, Patchway, Avonmouth, Southmead, Nailsea, Weston, Bath, and Thornbury were mobilised at 00:30hrs to reports of a fire at a school on Tower Road, Warmley.
“On arrival, firefighters found a large fire across parts of the building spanning across four teaching blocks ranging from one to three floors high.
“At its height, firefighters used six breathing apparatus for safety, and four 45mm jets to extinguish the fire. The turntable ladder was also used to help firefighters tackle the fire from height.
“Crews also used specialist equipment such as the high volume pump to ensure an adequate water supply was delivered to the scene. Police crews were also in attendance.”
Grange School closed in 2016 and the site was among six councilowned pieces of land earmarked for new housing by South Gloucestershire Council in December.