Attwood in bid to save blaze mill

30 July 2011 Last updated at 19:50 GMT The fire at Herdman's Mill re-ignited on Saturday morning Environment Minister Alex Attwood has vowed to help "save and protect" the listed Tyrone mill badly damaged in a fire on Saturday.

Fire crews battled for hours to contain the blaze which broke out at Herdman's Mill in Sion Mills in the early hours.

Fire crews were first alerted at about 0120 BST but the blaze later re-ignited and burned for several hours.

Mr Attwood said he would work to save the mill which featured in the BBC television series Restoration in 2003.

Last week, Ulster Bank appointed a receiver to the building.

The move ended more than 170 years of ownership for the Herdman family.

The former owners of the historic mill said they feared it may have been completely destroyed by the fire.

Forty fire officers were needed to deal with the blaze which was brought under control in the late afternoon.

Fire-fighters, who used two high-reach appliances while battling the blaze, are expected to remain at the scene until late on Saturday.

Mr Attwood said: "Our built heritage is a vital cog in our tourism industry and this fire greatly concerns me.

"The fire at the Mill damages a jewel in our built heritage... I have already raised my concern with my staff at the Environment Agency and other officials about the increase in fires at important at-risk buildings this year and we are urgently examining what needs to be done."

Senior fire officer Mark Deeney said: "It was a quite difficult fire to fight. Because of the previous fires, the building was very structurally unsound.

'Access problems'

"We have had a minor collapse at the rear of the building overnight because of the previous fire.

"You can also see the fire has spread into the roof area which provides us with problems for access."

It had been hoped to redevelop the 60-acre site which dominates the village.

Celia Ferguson, a member of the Herdman family and a trustee of the Sion Mills Buildings Preservation Trust, said she was "watching the most important industrial building in Ireland being destroyed by fire".

She said it was because of the "neglect of funders to do anything with the building".

She added: "It's a tragedy not just for Sion Mills, but for the whole northwest."

Strabane District Council chairman Brian McMahon said there was a "palpable sense of loss in the local community" at the devastation.

The Sinn Fein councillor, speaking from the scene, said: ""While the full extent of the damage will not become clear for a few days, this fire has undoubtedly delivered a setback in the efforts to redevelop the mill and the 60-acre site it stands on for the socio-economic benefit of the people of this area.

"However, this setback will hopefully reinforce everyone's determination to forge ahead."

Herdman's Mill, the last wet-spinning flax mill in Ireland, was opened during the potato famine.

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Exclusion zone around major blaze

15 June 2011 Last updated at 14:04 GMT The building is believed to have been empty A 200m exclusion zone has been put in place by firefighters at a major blaze in Lanarkshire.

Gas cylinders were being stored in a unit at the Biggar Road Industrial Estate in Cleland when the fire started.

Five fire pumps and the Strathclyde Fire and Rescue forward control unit have been called to the incident.

No one has been injured and the 50m-long building was believed to have been empty.

Local resident David Young said: "One of the warehouses has gone up. It's massive - there's a lot of smoke and it can be seen for miles."

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Fire crews tackle scrapyard blaze

19 May 2011 Last updated at 16:45 GMT Smoke from the fire was visible about 30 miles away More than 70 firefighters are tackling a major blaze at a scrapyard in Newcastle.

A number of explosions were reported coming from the facility in Albion Row, in the Byker area of the city.

Smoke from the blaze could be seen across the city and as far away as Hartlepool, about 30 miles away.

The fire service said it was bringing the blaze under control but warned those nearby to stay indoors.

Some surrounding roads were closed to traffic to allow emergency crews access to the scene.

Lee Herbert took this video of the fire at a scrapyard in Byker, Newcastle, in its early stages.

Michael Potts, from the Free Trade pub in Byker, said he heard a number of explosions when the fire began.

He said: "We heard several bangs and then saw a lot of smoke."

Assistant Chief Fire Officer Tom Capeling, of Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service, said: "At this moment in time there is no immediate danger to the public.

"However, as a precaution we would advise people in the area to keep their doors and windows shut."

He said firefighters were using equipment which could pump out 8,000 litres of water a minute over a distance of 3 km.

Mr Capeling added: "The pump is designed to be used at large-scale fires and is currently using water from the local area and the River Tyne.

"The fire and rescue service expects fire crews to be at the scene into the night."

Smoke was billowing more than 200ft into the air (photo Kev Atkinson)

A spokesman said this was likely to result in severe traffic delays along Newcastle Quayside, City Road, Shields Road and Byker Bridge.

Gill Gosling, from Whitley Bay said: "It looked dramatic. I've worked in Bradford and I've seen mill fires and this was very dramatic.

"Big, black billowing smoke. It started with a very dramatic fire itself. Huge flames. And it was just before noon when we noticed it.

"I have never seen black smoke like it."

Mother-of-two Kath Lowe, 35, of Heaton, was helping tend the allotments at Hotspur Primary School on nearby Mowbray Street in Newcastle when the fire began.

She said: "We were outside with all the kids when suddenly the sky began to fill with black smoke.

"We were watching it pouring upwards when the wind changed direction and the plume began to billow towards the playground.

"We had to get all the kids indoors. the amount of smoke was incredible, and pitch black. It was like the hellmouth had opened."

Sian Thomas, of Byker said: "I could see the smoke all the way from town. It's just looks apocalyptic. It's quite scary."

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Probe of fatal caravan park blaze

12 June 2011 Last updated at 02:52 GMT The caravan was destroyed by the fire, which began in the early hours of Saturday An investigation is continuing into the cause of a caravan fire early on Saturday that killed two men and left a two-year-old girl with severe burns.

A man aged 58 and his son, 26, died in the blaze at Sunny Sands caravan park near Barmouth, in Talybont, Gwynedd.

It is believed the fire started accidentally in the awning of their touring caravan before engulfing it.

The older man's 50-year-old wife and their granddaughter were rescued from the fire by fellow holidaymakers.

The injured pair were airlifted to Ysbyty Gwynedd Hospital. The girl was later transferred to Alder Hey Children's Hospital, in Liverpool.

Her grandmother sustained superficial burns to her forearm, police said.

The family, who were regular visitors to the park, are believed to be from Flint in north Wales.

A spokeswoman for North Wales Police and the North Wales Fire and Rescue Service said of the blaze, which broke out at about 0145 BST: "At the moment it looks as though it was accidental."

Ian Williams, 31, from Wrexham, was on holiday at the park with his wife and two-year-old daughter.

He said he had spoken to the family on Friday night and watched as the 26-year-old man had taken to the stage to sing a Kings Of Leon song.

"They were in the club singing and dancing. All four of them were on the stage," said Mr Williams.

He added: "My wife woke me up at about 2.30am and we thought someone was fighting because of all the shouting. I looked out and you would not believe how fast it went up. It was scary to be honest."

The coastal caravan park has been owned and operated by the same family for more than 45 years.

Jeremy Mead, director of the site, said it was working with the police to establish the fire's cause.

He said: "We would like to express our deepest sympathy to the family. It's upsetting for us because they were regular visitors to the park."

The site, set in the Snowdonia National Park, is popular with families and holidaymakers who are attracted by the area's miles of sandy beaches.

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