Firefighters battle overnight blaze at Bolton industrial unit

Firefighters worked through the night after a blaze broke out at a large industrial unit on Adelaide Street in Bolton just before 21:50 BST on Thursday. Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service sent eight fire engines and an aerial unit to the scene, and residents nearby were told to keep windows and doors closed while crews tackled the smoke and flames.

The scale of the response shows how quickly a fire at an industrial site can become a wider public-safety issue, not just a building fire. Industrial units can house stock, machinery and materials that burn intensely or produce heavy smoke, and the immediate concern in Bolton was keeping people away from the area while crews remained at work.

Elsewhere, similar incidents have shown how much disruption a single industrial-unit blaze can cause. In Kingswood near Bristol, six fire engines and 40 firefighters were called to Moravian Road at about 05:30 GMT, and Avon Fire and Rescue Service said the building had been badly damaged by the fire.

A separate incident in Kidderminster underlined the knock-on effects for transport and local access. Queen Street was closed in both directions between Broad Street and Larkhill during the blaze there, and Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service said someone was believed to have suffered a minor injury. The service later said the fire was under control.

In Bolton, the overnight deployment of eight engines and an aerial unit marked a substantial emergency response on a street lined with industrial premises. The fire remained in the hands of crews into the night, with emergency workers focusing on containing the damage and limiting the risk to people and property around Adelaide Street.