Probe into warehouse fire seen across Mersey
● PROBES have been launched into the cause of a large Widnes warehouse fire which could be seen from Runcorn.
At its peak, 15 fire engines plus an aerial appliance were called to the Unifrax-Saffil factory on Tan House Lane on the evening of Thursday, April 20.
A Cheshire Fire And Rescue Service (CFRS) spokeswoman said that when firefighters arrived, they were confronted with a large blaze involving plastic and cardboard.
It caused a huge plume of smoke which could be seen for miles around, including from the banks of the River Mersey in Runcorn and from higher vantage points in the town such as Halton Castle.
Roads surrounding the site were closed, with residents advised to stay away and keep doors and windows shut.
Public Health England issued advice for anyone who may have inhaled smoke from the blaze to contact their GP.
By 11pm, the CFRS spokeswoman said that most of the closed roads were open and at midnight, the number of crews had fallen to 10 while some remained throughout the night into Friday, April 21.
Firefighters continued to tackle the blaze on Friday and drone footage of the scene on the morning was captured by Ian Cank, 28, from Warrington.
Most of the walls and the warehouse roof appeared to have been almost completely gutted by the fire, leaving only the building’s structure in place.
In parts of the video, smoke could still be seen coming from the building’s ruins.
Special booms were also laid to stop water sprayed onto the ● The devastation seen from a drone fire from entering the River Mersey.
The CFRS spokeswoman said: “This ensured that every effort was made to protect the environment.
“A structural engineer assessed the building and deemed it safe, so a fire investigation into the cause of this fire was undertaken, although it was not believed to be suspicious.”
Fire hot spots were damped down over the weekend and at 9.31am on Monday, April 24, firefighters handed the site over to the owners.