Fifty people had to be evacuated from their homes after a fire broke out in the basement of a Bristol block of flats.
Fire crews from Bedminster, Hicks Gate, Southmead, Kingswood and Temple were called to Freemantle House - near Stokes Croft - at 9.15pm last night (October 5) to reports of a fire.
When crews arrived they found a fire in the electrical substation in the basement of the 10 storey block of flats.
Due to the large numbers of people living in the property, a major incident was declared, with dozens of people being evacuated from the property as a precaution.
An emergency response centre was set in a church at Lower Gay Street by Bristol City Council to care for those evacuated from their properties.
At the height of the incident, around 40 firefighters were on scene.
Western Power was called to the property where the electrical cables were quickly isolated.
Crews using four breathing apparatus and two jets extinguished the blaze.
Avon Fire and Rescue Service group manager Luke Gazzard said: “None of the flats were affected or damaged by the fire.
“The properties were evacuated as a precaution while we dealt with the fire and people were moved to a nearby property.
“The fire was in the basement where the electrical cables come into the building.
“We worked with Western Power who quickly managed to isolate the power, allowing us to deal with the fire.”
No one was injured as a result of the fire.
Crews left the scene at around 1am. It is understood residents have been let back into their homes.
The fire caused power outages in the surrounding area.
Fire officials will be revisiting the scene today to re-inspect the sub station. Initial investigations revealed the cause of the blaze to be a fault in the cable.
A temporary generator has been installed at Freemantle House to ensure supplies to residents while permanent repairs are carried out.
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