Overview
- A fire started on Little Walden Road at 12:22pm on Friday, October 2 and severely damaged a workshop that was connected to a family home.
- Essex County Fire and Rescue led the response and was joined by crews from Suffolk and Cambridgeshire with up to ten engines, a water bowser and a turntable ladder.
- Firefighters said a poor local water supply and the presence of acetylene cylinders made the incident harder to tackle and required crews to remain into the evening to monitor hotspots.
- The fire service has determined the cause was accidental and reported no injuries, while the garage owner has told media that a campervan on an MOT ramp may have ignited the blaze; that vehicle-related claim is unconfirmed by the fire service.
- Residents were told to keep windows and doors shut because of heavy smoke and the business and the linked home suffered major damage with several vehicles destroyed or badly damaged.