Video: Whittlesey factory inferno
12.30pm: A huge cloud of thick black smoke hung over Peterborough as fire ripped through the Abbey Produce premises at Kings Dyke on the outskirts of Whittlesey this morning.
12.30pm: A huge cloud of thick black smoke hung over Peterborough as fire ripped through the Abbey Produce premises at Kings Dyke on the outskirts of Whittlesey this morning.Firefighters expect to be tackling one of the biggest fires in the county's history for the rest of the day after the Whittlesey warehouse was engulfed by flames.
Crews from across Cambridgeshire were pitched into battle against the inferno at a factory on the A605 owned by the Abbey Group, which produces corrugated casing.
As it happened:
Read the breaking news story, with a reader video and photos, see more photos and reader video here.
The full story:
Whittlesey factory fire, February 2008.
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Speaking this morning after the flames had been brought under control, Station Commander at Dogsthorpe fire station Nick Foster said the blaze was expected to still be burning this evening.
Station commander Foster said: "It's one of the biggest fires that Cambridgeshire has ever seen. A fire like this is a very rare occurence."
Four employees in the factory when the fire broke out at about 7.30am were safely evacuated, the fire service confirmed.
Early reports of explosions from eyewitnesses were also backed by the brigade, with Station Commander Foster revealing that gas cylinders stored at the factory are believed to have blown up.
The fire sent a towering column of black fumes skyward, which was visible for miles around. It caused transport chaos, with the railway between Peterborough and Whittlesey closed, and roads in the surrounding area shut.
The fire service launched a huge operation to tackle the blaze, sending 15 engines and 75 crewmen to the scene, with crews from Whittlesey, Dogsthorpe and Stanground among those attending, with engines from as far afield as St Ives and Cambridge offering assistance.
Eyewitnesses reported seeing flames "the size of houses" leaping from the burning building, while a passer-by who reached the scene before firefighters said the heat could even be felt through his car door from 80 metres away.
Residents worried by the smoke were warned to stay indoors and keep their windows closed, and cordons were set up by the emergency services around the site, forcing commuters heading for Peterborough to find another route to the city.
By 10am, the fire service said the blaze was under control, adding that it had not been classified as a "major incident", but was nevertheless a "significant" one.
The nearby brickworks run by Hanson was also emptied, with 250 staff evacuated.
Karen Williams (33), of Moorhen Road, Whittlesey, was alerted by the wail of sirens this morning.
She said: "The smoke went on for miles."
Fire investigators were on the scene late this morning.
The brigade had set up 11 static jets or "ground monitors" to keep water on the fire.
Continues on next page: Scene was like 'Armageddon' this morningScene was like 'Armageddon' this morning
Residents reported today how they heard an explosion and saw flames leap hundreds of feet into the air when the fire at a Whittlesey warehouse first broke out.
As firefighters from across the area rushed to the scene people watched in awe as flames and smoke, which could be seen from miles around, leapt skyward.
Among the witnesses was town councillor Ken Mayor, who lives in Stonald Road. He said: "I think it started at about 7am this morning.
My wife said 'just look out of the window' and we could see this great big, massive, plume of smoke going ever so high into the atmosphere and being blown towards Thorney."
Manager of Rivergate shopping centre in Peterborough, Paul Chippington said he thinks he heard an explosion.
Mr Chippington was putting his horses out in a field in Stanground when he heard the bang.
He said: "I heard a boom and thought it was an aircraft so I looked up and saw flames shooting hundreds of feet into the air.
"Then I saw plumes of smoke. I think there might have been a secondary fire because you could make things out in the air after that such as debris.
"I just hope there were no casualties, hopefully at that time of day there weren't too many people about."
Photographer Vic Engelbrecht (36) was on the scene before the emergency services and saw "flames the size of houses" leaping from the building.
He saw the plume of smoke from Park Farm after dropping his wife off at work at Stanground College at around 7.30am.
And as he approached the inferno in his car along the main road into Whittlesey, he said he could feel the heat even through the doors of the vehicle.
Stopping about 80 metres from the fire, he snapped dramatic pictures of the raging flames.
He said: "There were flames the size of houses coming out of the doors of the factory and right under the roof. Even inside the car I could feel the heat."
Mandy Ward (37), of Oxford Gardens, Whittlesey, said an eerie wailing siren made the morning feel "like Armageddon".
She spotted the towering column of smoke from a downstairs window at around 7.30am and then dashed upstairs for a better view.
Miss Ward said: "I could see this thick black smoke belching out and with the force it was going up, it was obvious something serious had happened.
"My first reaction was that it was McCain's or the brickyards, but I had never seen anything like it. It was absolutely horrific.
"I could hear something like a Second World War air-raid siren, which sounded like Armageddon."
Special Report: Whittlesey factory fire, February 2008
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Tuesday 16 March 2010
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