Sponsored by
Arsonists destroy unfinished flats in 25 minutes
An arson probe has been launched after a fireball engulfed two empty blocks of flats in Millfield on Friday night (12 June), burning them to the ground as frightened residents looked on.
An arson probe has been launched after a fireball engulfed two empty blocks of flats in Millfield on Friday night (12 June), burning them to the ground as frightened residents looked on.The intensity of the blaze, which started at 6.40pm on Friday, forced residents to be evacuated from their homes, and traffic on busy Lincoln Road was brought to a standstill as police set up roadblocks.
No one was hurt in the fire, but several sheds and a new conservatory were damaged when the two three-storey wooden structures collapsed within half an hour of being set alight.
Flames shot tens of feet into the air, and a huge black cloud hung over the city.
Today, all that remains of the development in the fire's aftermath are a few pieces of charred wood.
Gallery:
More photos including reader photos of the scene on Friday
---------------------
The drama began when eye witnesses described the sky turning black as the fire took hold on the building site, which is sandwiched between houses inn Taverners Road and Norfolk Street, in Millfield.
Scores of residents gathered to watch the blaze as emergency services rushed to the scene, with the fire service receiving more than 40 999 calls.
The unfinished flats, which have not been worked on since January, went up "in minutes" and thick, billowing smoke could be seen across the city as the flames reached a height of 30 feet, and massive crowds on onlookers began to gather.
More than 20 firefighters from Dogsthorpe, Stanground, Thorney and Peterborough Volunteers fought the blaze, and the turntable ladder from Dogsthorpe was also dispatched.
By then, the fire had taken hold and firefighters could do nothing to save the blocks, so their attention turned to nearby homes as fears were raised that the flames could spread to them.
Beverly Jost, whose home was next to the site in Norfolk Street, was first alerted to the blaze when the sky turned black.
She said: "My husband and I ran out into the street to find all our neighbours there looking at the fire.
"It took hold so quickly that all you could see of the building was a silhouette around an orange ball of fire ,and that was gone in less than 25 minutes."
Mrs Jost said some neighbours feared for their homes as bits of wood and fire started to fly off the building as it collapsed.
She added: "The heat was so intense your cheeks were burning, people started to move back then."
Fire incident commander Lynn Betteridge praised his firefighters' quick work.
He said: "As the buildings were essentially a timber frame, there was very little that could be done to save them, so our concentration fell to protecting the homes near the flats."
"Crews used two jets and two hosereels and succeeded in stopping the fire from spreading."
Today, a spokeswoman for Cambridgeshire Fire Service said the fire had been started deliberately.
And a spokeswoman for Cambridgeshire police confirmed an investigation into the blaze had been launched, led by Detective Sergeant Taylor. It is not known who owns the site.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Peterborough
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: East
Your view
Please sign in to be able to comment on this story.