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Major recycling warehouse fire tackled by crews

Kris Holland & Lewis Adams
BBC News, Northamptonshire
Steve Hubbard/BBC A wall of flames, fire and black smoke are shown in the background while people stand at a distance to survey the scene from a distance in the foregroundSteve Hubbard/BBC
A full evacuation of the warehouse was completed before fire crews arrived at the scene early on Friday

A large warehouse blaze that led to a major incident being declared has been tackled by dozens of firefighters.

Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service was called to the Monoworld recycling site on the Sanders Lodge industrial estate in Rushden, Northamptonshire, at 06:30 BST.

Fifteen crews - including some from neighbouring counties - were called to tackle the blaze, which involved a large quantity of plastic.

By Friday evening the major incident had been stood down and the blaze brought under control, but crews would continue to dampen down the site into Saturday, the fire service said. No-one has been hurt.

At its height, smoke billowing from the warehouse could be seen for miles around, with people living in Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire reporting it.

Thick black smoke could be seen rising over Rushden

All roads on the estate remain closed and would continue to be until at least Saturday, said the fire service.

The nearby A45 and Rushden Lakes shopping centre have remained open.

Eight fire appliances, two aerial appliances and a special high-volume pump remained at the scene.

Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service Flames and a black plume of smoke are shown rising from a recycling facility. In the foreground, a warehouse building is shown alongside bales of what appears to be plastic-based material.Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service
Crews were called to the scene at about 06:30 BST
Steve Hubbard/BBC A huge plume of black smoke and flames pour from the warehouse site, with other industrial buildings visible in the background.Steve Hubbard/BBC
Drone footage at the height of the blaze showed its shear scale

Assistant chief fire officer, Phil Pells, said: "The Local Resilience Forum has made the decision to stand down the major incident and our focus now is to ensure that we continue to damp down the fire and reduce the smoke plume.

"I am grateful for the hard work of our emergency services and I'd also like to thank the community in Rushden for their cooperation, support and understanding throughout this incident."

David Gill An aerial view of the fire, taken from an airplane, showing a towering plume of black smoke rising into the clouds above. Fields and the nearby town of Rushden are visible surrounding the epicentre of the fire.David Gill
People living in Bedford - 13 miles (21km) away - have reported spotting the smoke plume

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