Warehouse on fire in Hockley Birmingham - WMFS warn of traffic delays in city centre

West Midlands Fire Services is set to remain in attendance at a large fire at a warehouse in Hockley throughout this evening.

Fire fighters issued a notification about the incident on New Summer Street to alert the public at 8.14am this morning (Monday, February 27). Several people posted pictures of huge plumes of smoke over the city centre.

West Midlands Fire Service urged people to avoid the area and warned that locals must keep their doors and windows shut to keep smoke out and that roads had been closed. Fire fighters were working with the police and council to reduce the cordon, but they said they expected restrictions to remain this evening. It is not yet known how the fire started.

In their latest update at 4.12pm WMFS said: “Our crews have been making good progress in tackling this fire. No fire spread has occurred to adjacent properties thanks to the efforts of our firefighters’ effective and assertive operations.

“We’ve reduced our resources at the scene to five fire engines and a hydraulic platform. Fire investigations teams have been in attendance but have not been able to confirm any cause at this stage. Investigations will be ongoing.

“Crews are working with the local authority and West Midlands Police to reduce cordons and road closures as much as safely possible. A structural engineer has also attended. It’s expected the incident will remain open into the evening.”

Alerting the public to the incident earlier this morning WMFS said: “Large fire in progress in a warehouse on New Summer Street, Hockley, 6 fire engines in attendance.  Large amounts of smoke can be seen across Newtown, Birmingham.

“Just after 07.30am this morning, we were called to reports of a fire in a two storey warehouse on New Summer Street, Hockley, Birmingham. A total of 14 fire crews, with over 60 firefighters have been mobilised to this incident, along with other specialist vehicles and equipment. As a result of this incident, traffic is being seriously affected in the city centre. Please avoid the area if possible.”

There were no reports of injuries. WMFS issued a further update at 10.22am saying that West Midlands Police and West Midlands Ambulance Service were also at the scene and that nearby properties had been evacuated and surrounding roads closed.

Updating the pubic at 10.22am WMFS spokesperson said: “The incident is a severe fire in a mid-terraced factory unit storing household goods. Currently, firefighters in breathing apparatus are using 4 main jets to tackle the blaze.

“Our high-volume pumping unit is also at the scene, along with a hydraulic platform. West Midlands Police and West Midlands Ambulance are also on-site assisting our crews, with police closing some surrounding roads.

“Nearby properties have been evacuated. There are no reported casualties at this time. Those nearby, travelling or local residents or businesses, are advised to avoid the smoke plume where possible and close doors and windows.”