70 firefighters fought to bring Biggleswade warehouse fire under control

Crews were called to a report of a lorry fire at Bedfordshire Growers just after 7pm. On arrival the fire was well developed and had spread to a warehouse building.

Nearby residents were warned to keep their windows closed to avoid the heavy smoke.

Firefighters from across the county supported by colleagues from Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service tackled the fire wearing breathing apparatus. Two aerial platforms, one each from Bedford and Luton were used and fought the fire using hose jets, and ground monitors to get the blaze under control as quickly as possible.

Strategic Operational Commander, Chris Ball who was leading the incident said: “Although it was hard work firefighters brought the fire quickly under control containing it to the part of the building originally affected and preventing it from affecting the surrounding buildings and neighbourhood.

“There are still hot spots of fire within the building this morning, and firefighters at the scene are dealing with these. However due to the roofing and walls collapsing there is considerable debris within the building that is still burning and is hard to reach due to the fact that the building is unsafe to enter. This will be monitored throughout the day and a full fire investigation will be completed to identify the cause of the fire.”

Chief Fire Officer, Paul Fuller, CBE said: “I’d like to thank all those involved from control staff to Firefighters on the ground worked hard to get the fire under control quickly. They did a great job in difficult conditions. I extend our thanks to our colleagues from the Police and Ambulance Service along with our colleagues from Cambridgeshire and a special thanks to the Rapid Relief Team who attended to provide refreshments to the operational team”.