02 Nov 2012
A number of flats in Manchester city centre had to be evacuated after a major fire swept through a bakery located just below.
Fire crews from Greater Manchester Fire Service attended the blaze on St James Street and led over 20 people to safety.
A woman from one of the flats above reported the fire when smoke began entering the property at around 7.30am. Both the woman and her five-month-old baby were said to be unharmed.
A spokesman for the fire service said that the blaze appeared to be located in the bin compound and storage area of the ground floor bakery. Residents from the three floors above the bakery were then cleared by fire crews.
The fire struck in the China town region of Manchester’s city centre and fire fighters subdued the blaze with water jets and hose reels. Crews had to be assembled from as far away as Hyde and Salford to help get the fire under control.
The spokesman said there had been no reports of injuries, although fire crews needed to utilise breathing apparatus while fighting the blaze.
Copyright Press Association 2012