DEMOLITION work started today at a badly-damaged plastic recycling plant hit by three fires in two months.

A specialist contractor start knocking down the remains of the building's steel-framed structure at the former V10 Polymers site in Blackburn.

Plastic waste caught fire at the site in Paterson Street on Sunday, October 8 just over a week after 70 firefighters tackled a blaze at the same location when thousands of tonnes were destroyed.

It took days to completely extinguish.

The contractors spent the weekend preparing for the demolition work to begin this morning.

The asbestos clean-up has now been completed.

Council bosses said all of the residential properties have been cleaned, while the canal towpath and Paterson Street have been cleaned, vacuumed and power washed.

Since the first fire in August, the Environment Agency have worked closely with Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service (LFRS) and Blackburn with Darwen Council on a plan to reduce the risk of fire on site.

The Environment Agency used emergency powers to instruct the contractors, who had been creating fire breaks, to knock down the remaining structures.

Letters have been sent out to residents in the area to keep them updated.

A multi-agency meeting also too place this morning to discuss the next steps for the site The Environment Agency will be at Blackburn Magistrates Court on November 14 with the companies involved in the site in relation to potential offences, while investigations continue into the circumstances of the fires.

Police are appealing to local residents to report information assist the inquiries and have urged people to stay away from the site for their own safety.

Neil Hardiman, LFRS's service delivery manager, said: "The removal of the structure along with any other dangerous steel fixtures on site will also deter any unauthorised entry onto the premises.

"Residents will have also noticed that significant work has taken place over the last week to ensure that the remaining waste is in the safest possible location."

Previous owners V10 Polymers went bankrupt selling the site to Holt Development which subsequently went into receivership.

The site is now held by liquidators, Begbys who have a site management company Eddison Remote responsible for it's security and management.

The borough council wants the site cleared and redeveloped.