Severe fire rips through Walsall factory building
A 'severe' fire ripped through a factory building in Walsall with firefighters using an aerial platform to tackle the flames.
West Midlands Fire Service was called to the blaze at the site in Green Street, Walsall, at 5.42pm yesterday.
Green Street was closed while four crews sought to extinguish the fire near the junction with Stockton Close.
The fire measured approximately 30m (98ft) by 20m (66ft) according to West Midlands Fire Control.
Firefighters left the scene around 9.40pm but will return this morning to ensure the site is safe and to manage any remaining hot spots.
Photographs posted on Twitter show the extent of the damage caused by the blaze to both the inside and outside of the unit.
Reece Allen, aged 20, lives nearby and said he believed there had been an explosion.
"As we went to walk down to the factory we could see how powerful it had been," he said.
"The beams had been pulled out of the floor."
