Wilton House, Bury Road

Image: © David Dixon Taken: 25 Aug 2012

The remains of the former General Engineering factory on Bury Road, taken at around 4pm on Saturday, some 40+ hours since a large fire destroyed most of the complex (cf Image] taken in January). The fire broke out shortly before 10pm on Thursday (23rd August) in the former General Engineering factory and adjoining warehouse on Bury Road. More than 60 firefighters attended the incident and spent the night tackling the blaze, along with ten fire engines, two aerial appliances and a number of specialist vehicles. Efforts to extinguish the blaze were hampered when a large gas pipe ruptured which led to a small explosion creating a gas flare and causing the collapse of part of the industrial complex. The heat from the fire at a site on Bury Road was so intense it cracked the windows of the flats opposite, forcing the emergency services to evacuate local residents from About 100 homes in the Bury Road and Schofield Street areas to Radcliffe Civic Suite in Thomas Street. Firefighters eventually managed to gain control of the blaze after the gas supply to the fractured pipe was isolated in the early hours of the morning and were then able to begin damping down the site. Bury Road remained closed until Saturday afternoon. It is believed the building was empty at the time of the fire but an investigation is underway. For more images, see http://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=35454929 Read more: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/homes-evacuated-amid-factory-blaze-in-radcliffe-8078444.html (The Independent) http://www.metro.co.uk/news/909670-radcliffe-factory-fire-causes-100-homes-to-be-evacuated#ixzz24Ul8gRvN (Metro News) http://www.itv.com/news/granada/update/2012-08-24/radcliffe-factory-fire-explosion/ (ITV News) http://www.towerfm.co.uk/news/local/investigation-after-massive-factory-fire-in-radcliffe/ (Tower FM) http://www.burytimes.co.uk/news/9891409.Huge_factory_fire_in_Radcliffe/?action=complain&cid=10686350 (Bury Times) http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1587091_major-evacuation-after-gas-explosion-in-radcliffe---video-and-pictures (Manchester Evening News)

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