25 firefighters remain at scene of huge factory blaze

Firefighters are planning to spend a second day at the scene of a major blaze at a sports equipment factory near The Fort shopping centre which broke out on Wednesday afternoon.

Shopping centre staff were evacuated as a huge plume of smoke could be seen rising from the factory, with staff only being allowed to return to the scene hours later to retrieve personal belongings.

All staff members of the affected factory have been accounted for, however, due to the intensity of the blaze, around 25 firefighters, five fire engines and two hydraulic platforms remained at the scene overnight to continue to extinguish the flames.

At 8.25am, West Midlands Fire Service, said: "Five fire engines and around 25 firefighters remain at this incident, extinguishing hotspots.

"Throughout the night, crews made good progress damping down multiple hotspots across the site. This work will continue throughout the day. Two hydraulic platforms remain in operation. Crews are monitoring ground temperatures using thermal imaging cameras."

All road closures that were previously in place have now been lifted, with the fire service thanking everyone for their patience.

West Midlands Fire Service said: "All road closures have been lifted. We’d like to thank the public for their understanding and co-operation as we worked to bring a very large incident under control.

"We continue to work with the site owner and police colleagues, who are assisting with traffic management. At present, only emergency services personnel can access the site."

One man was assessed for injuries at the scene, however, he was discharged soon after.

West Midlands Ambulance Service said: "One man has been assessed following a large fire in the Erdington area of Birmingham.

"West Midlands Ambulance Service was alerted to the blaze at around 3.40pm on Wednesday to a fire at a property on Wood Lane.

"Three paramedic officers and the Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) were sent to the scene and assessed the man, who was discharged at the scene."

The massive smoke plume could be seen from miles around, with social media users from around the West Midlands reporting of seeing 'a huge black tower' rising over the Birmingham skyline.

Darren Stevenson, 36, of Wolverhampton, said: "I work in one of the high-rise buildings and you could see it coming from the Birmingham direction.

"It looks quite bad, hopefully it's nothing too serious."

Walsall residents could also see the smoke rising from the Birmingham direction, with Lisa Crews, 41, of Walsall, saying it was 'terrifying'.

Ms Crews said: "It's shocking. You could see it clear as day from my house.

"It's terrifying really, isn't it? I hope everyone is okay. It looks like it is coming from the Birmingham area."