Birmingham wholesalers are assessing damage as a “severe” fire yesterday (6 August) ripped through two units on the market and destroyed pallets of fresh produce.
The blaze, which was brought under control at around 4pm yesterday (7 August), was attended by 40 firefighters and eight fire engines at the market’s site on Pershore Street. Plumes of smoke could be seen across Birmingham, according to reports and pictures on social media.
An investigation into the fire has begun today, while all units have re-opened for trade as usual, with the exception of the flower traders.
It may have been started by an electrical fault, according to chairman of the tenants’ association Mark Tate, who told the Birmingham Mail that there was a “flash” like an explosion on CCTV, just before the fire took off. “It could be an electrical fault in a fridge or something like that but we don’t know for certain,” he told the paper.
The blaze affected two units out of a total of around 80 on the site, and burnt wooden pallets and stick including fruit and vegetables in an open plan indoor area.
Wooden pallets and stock including fruit and vegetables were involved in the fire, in an open plan indoor area. There were no reported injuries.
“The operation involved around a dozen firefighters in breathing apparatus entering the building and attacking the fire, preventing its spread to several other units nearby,” said a spokesperson for the West Midlands Fire Service.
Traders rallied round to provide refreshment to firefighters, Tate told the Mail, by opening units and providing them with fresh watermelon.
“They were out in the heat all afternoon and looked thirsty, we had a joke with them saying that they had a ready supply of water,” he told the paper. “They said they couldn’t use their supplies so we opened the units and took them boxes of watermelon.”
Birmingham Wholesale Market is set to relocate to a purpose-built facility at The Hubb, in Witton, in about 18 months.
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