A fire at a factory in Washington has left a neighbouring NHS supplier with an unstable wall and a leaking roof. The blaze broke out at Streamline PopTop, which makes roofs for campervans, on Friday afternoon, sending massive plumes of smoke visible for miles.
Firefighters battled for over 12 hours
Firefighters spent more than 12 hours tackling the flames and remained at the scene on Saturday morning. Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service (TWFRS) say the cause of the fire is still unconfirmed.
Neville Stebbings, who runs Wescott Medical Ltd next door, said the fire blew the wall between the two buildings, leaving it unstable, and damaged the roof covering, causing a leak.
Witness describes 'massive blaze'
The 69-year-old described hearing a loud explosion and seeing his wall move. He told ChronicleLive: "It went up like a rocket, it was a massive blaze. When the explosion happened that blew the wall I was standing 12 ft away from the wall inside the roller shutter. It was a bit frightening to be honest.
"There was a huge bang and I saw the wall move. It could have been nasty if it came over. We have been told the roof isn't unsafe but the wall may fall over. We can't go into that area.
"We haven't been able to do a full assessment of the stock to make sure it's not damaged. We're trying to find out the extent of the damage, what we can and can't do and what contingency plans we might need to put into effect."
Family business fears for jobs
Neville, who lives in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, has run the family business, which supplies hospital equipment to the NHS and the private sector, from Crowther Industrial Estate for the last two years. His son Alex, who also works in the business, was outside making a phone call when he spotted grey smoke coming from Streamline PopTop at around 3.40pm.
The 37-year-old said: "I went in to get everybody out of our building. The first fire engine turned up and, by that point, it was well up. As the fire engine turned up, the first explosion happened. There was two or three explosions."
Alex said the fire service blocked off the area and they were unable to get their vehicles out until 9.30pm. He said: "From the fire starting at 20 to four we were unable to leave. It was concerning for us. We knew everybody had got out ok but it was worrying for us watching the flames blow onto our side, onto our building."
Staff reassured over jobs
Neville said his eight staff were concerned about their jobs. He said: "The staff, over the weekend, were all worried about their jobs. They've all been reassured that we're not closing down and nobody is being made redundant. It's just a problem we have to deal with.
"It's just a huge disruption to us really. Thankfully we're well insured but the insurance companies aren't quick to take action. We might end up having to move out and operate from a different premises which is a big job. Over the weekend, there were all these thoughts going through my mind."
Fire service statement
TWFRS said firefighters were at the scene all night and left after 8am when the flames were extinguished. They are not yet able to confirm the cause of the blaze.
A spokesperson for the service said: "We can confirm on the afternoon of Friday 31st July, eight fire appliances attended a fire at a commercial property in Washington. The emergency call was received by our Fire Control Team at 15:40 and crews from Marley Park, Farringdon, South Shields, Gateshead, West Denton, Byker and Newcastle Central Community Fire Stations were dispatched to the scene near to Crowther Industrial Estate in Washington.
"Crews left the scene at 08:14, once the fire had been safely extinguished. The cause is unconfirmed at present."
