Ten fire crews sent to large factory blaze

Firefighters have been dealing with a large blaze at a factory in Wolverhampton.

West Midlands Fire Service said, at its height, 10 crews were in attendance at the incident on Walsall Street, Horsley Fields.

It added it began to scale down its presence at the scene from about 11:30, with three fire engines remaining.

Local resident Rachel Hamblett said she heard "popping sounds" at about 05:00 BST, adding: "Those popping sounds became louder, I was wondering what was going on, then loud bangs."

She said: "I looked out my window to realize there was a massive blaze outside close to people's homes."

Hamblett added that shortly afterwards, firefighters arrived and started to get the fire under control and people were evacuated from their homes.

Flames engulfed the two-storey commercial factory unit, West Midlands Fire Service said.

There are road closures affecting York Street, Walsall Street, Shakespeare Street and Lower Walsall Street.

People were asked to avoid the area, while those living or working nearby also advised to keep windows and doors shut as a precaution.

The fire service said a structural engineer was on site to assess the building, but there had been no injuries or casualties.

West Midlands Police, National Grid, Severn Trent, Cadent, and the city council had all been at the site liaising with fire crews, the spokesperson added.

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