Firefighters faced extreme conditions as they tackled a fire at a commercial building in Sunderland's Hendon area on Wednesday evening. The blaze, which broke out on Villiers Street, was brought under control by around 8:30pm, with crews leaving the scene shortly after.
Emergency Response and Initial Actions
Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service received an emergency call at 3:51pm on Wednesday, 24 June, and dispatched crews from Sunderland Central and Marley Park Community Fire Stations. The first appliances arrived within three minutes of the call. The building, believed to be vacant, was fully involved in the fire.
A spokesperson for the fire service stated: “We can confirm that on Wednesday, 24 June, crews attended an incident in Sunderland. The emergency call came into our control room team at 3.51pm and crews from our Sunderland Central and Marley Park Community Fire Stations were despatched to the Hendon area, with the first appliances arriving within three minutes.”
Firefighting Efforts and Public Safety
The fire service urged people to avoid the area and advised nearby residents to keep windows and doors closed as smoke spread. Crews worked diligently in what the service described as “extreme conditions” to extinguish the blaze. The cause of the fire remains unknown at this time.
The spokesperson added: “The incident involved a fire in a commercial building. Crews worked hard in some extreme conditions to safely extinguish the blaze, before leaving the scene shortly after 8.30pm.”
Impact and Investigation
No injuries were reported, and the building's vacant status likely prevented any casualties. The fire service has not yet indicated whether an investigation into the cause will be conducted, but standard procedure typically involves determining the origin of such fires.
