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'Please help find my dad's treasured possessions'

Laura O'Neill
BBC News, Manchester
Family handout A black and white picture of Mollie Lord (left) and her dad Warren. She has long dark hair and wears a light coloured faux fur-style jacket. He has a bald head and wears a t-shirt and a black jacketFamily handout
Mollie Lord's father Warren died suddenly two years ago at the age of 48

A woman whose late father's treasured belongings were being kept at a storage unit that went up in flames has told how she is hoping the sentimental items can be recovered.

Mollie Lord's father Warren died suddenly two years ago at the age of 48.

She had been storing his belongings at the Storage World unit in Middleton, Rochdale, where a fire broke out on 18 June, but believes the sentimental possessions may have survived.

"My dad was my best friend, I really thought the world of him. For me, retrieving my dad's possessions is not about money it's about preserving his legacy," the 25-year-old from Middleton said.

"He wasn't a man that had designer things he had stuff that was 'him'. He loved his job so there's a big toolbox in there with tools he's collected since the age of 18.

"There's pictures of me when I was a kid, pictures of our old family dog, Father's Day gifts that I've bought him, mugs, loads of just little things alongside his tools that are irreplaceable and sentimental to me."

Phil Ireland An aerial view of the fire at Storage World, showing the modern, white-rooved building and black smoke pouring from one sidePhil Ireland
The building is set to be demolished on safety grounds following the blaze

The building is set to be demolished on safety grounds but after seeing drone footage of the wreckage, she believe her section of the warehouse may be salvageable.

Ms Lord has launched a petition asking Storage World to allow those with surviving units to be given the opportunity to access them.

She said they are all willing to pay privately to get their belongings removed by a professional salvage team.

Storage World said it had contractors on site who are salvaging goods from outside the building and also assessing the best way to demolish it with the maximum opportunity to save any belongings.

Family handout The contents of Warren's toolbox. Alongside various tools, several pictures of Molly as a child are stuck to the lid along with a picture of a black labradorFamily handout
Mollie Lord said her father's belongings include many sentimental items he had collected

Ms Lord said: "I am fighting to get it back as much as I physically can just because I feel like my dad deserves more than that.

"He didn't work his full life for his belongings to get destroyed. He doesn't deserve that and neither do I.

"It's equally as traumatic for me as everyone else going through this so I'm going to keep fighting until something comes out of it, whether they are charred, smoke damaged, water damaged, that's fine but I'd rather have that than nothing."

Storage World said drone footage had shown "very limited goods that are in a salvageable condition" but it remains remains committed to recovering any belongings safely.

A statement said: "We understand people have a strong emotional connection to the items they have lost, which is why we are doing what we can to salvage them. Safety is our number one consideration."

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