Huge scrapyard blaze not treated as suspicious
A massive fire which tore through a Sunderland scrap yard is not being treated as suspicious, fire chiefs have confirmed.
Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue has confirmed investigations so far have determined the blaze as not being suspicious but have set out what will happen as checks continue to be made into how the fire started.
The alarm was raised just after 11am on Monday, July 19.
Huge plumes of black smoke were sent rising into the air from the scene of the incident in Hendon Street, which runs from the A1018 Hendon Road and Hendon Road East.
People were urged to stay away from the scene and residents nearby were told there would be disruption to the surrounding roads and homes as the fire was brought under control.
Ten appliances were sent to battle the flames and fumes at its height, remaining at the fire through the night to dampen down.
The last crew left the scene at 3.30am the next morning.
The service said a large amount of materials were in the yard when the blaze began with its firefighters facing "extremely torturous” conditions as they tackled the fire while also dealing with the hot weather conditions.
A spokesperson said: “We're not currently treating this as suspicious but we're still investigating alongside our partners.
“The investigation is looking into the aspects of fire safety to see what lessons can be learnt from how the fire started, developed and spread for the safety of the public and firefighters in the future.”