Firefighters still on scene of warehouse blaze

Fire services remain at Hyde Road dealing with the aftermath of an incident which saw up to 12 fire engines on site at its peak with smoke visible across Manchester.

Fire crews were called to the scene just before 7pm on Tuesday. The initial response was scaled up from eight to 12 engines immediately as the building was engulfed in fire across its 27,000 sq ft plot.

The warehouse, on Apsley Grove is occupied by Imperial Knitwear. No staff were injured in the fire.

The first priority for the crews was to contain the fire, and stop it spreading to two adjacent businesses; Apsley Cottage and the Apollo Business Centre.

By 9pm the building was deemed to be unstable, forcing crews to tackle the blaze from the warehouse’s exterior and attempt to control the spread. Due to strong winds, houses in the areas of Longsight and Gorton were advised to keep all doors and windows closed.

Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue group manager Mark Threader, who was leading the response, stated: “Crews have done a brilliant job in containing the fire and preventing it from spreading. So far their early hard work seems to be paying off, with the fire restricted to the initial building. Firefighters will be on the scene for the rest of the evening and we urge people to avoid the area.”

At around 11pm GMFRS began to scale down, reducing the engine presence to eight, along with the support of two cherry pickers. Road closures were put in place from the Apollo Theatre roundabout, down both Hyde and Stockport Road as far as Devonshire Street.

According to GMFRS when contacted by Place North West at 9am this morning, the closure and police cordon on Hyde and Stockport Road had been fully lifted. There remain crews on site, totalling three engines and two cherry pickers.

The crews are dampening down the scene alongside local electricity services to ensure no further fire breaks out, as well as removing hoses and other equipment to allow access to the surrounding businesses. 

An investigation is ongoing by Greater Manchester Police into how the fire broke out, but thanks to the work of the fire service, all neighbouring properties remain intact, with business expected to continue as soon as possible.

GMP and GMFRS are working alongside each other, conducting thermal scans of the surrounding properties to assess any other fire hazards, and held a multi-agency meeting this morning to discuss next steps.