MORE than 100 firefighters battled a blaze throughout the night near Bury town centre.

Efforts are continuing this morning to get the incident under control, with crews still at the scene and roads closed.

Residents are reporting that their water has gone off, United Utilites are sending emergency supplies as fire crews are still using the local water network to extinguish the flames. 

Crews from across Bury, Bolton and the wider Greater Manchester and Lancashire regions were drafted in to tackle the fire which started at a scrapyard in Pimhole Road. 

Firefighters were first called to the fire at 6.14pm on Thursday evening. As the fire spread, 27 fire engines arrived to battle the flames.

Explosions were heard in the area hours into the blaze and the glow in the sky was being reported as far as Breightmet. The fire was measure at approximately 30 square metres by 15 metres.

Over 12 hours later, residents were still being warned to stay indoors. Clouds of smoke can still be seen this morning. 

In the early hours of the morning, assistant chief fire officer Tony Hunter tweeted: "Greater Manchester fire crews, supported by Lancashire FRS, working hard at scrap yard fire in Bury.

"Over 100 firefighters, 27 fire engines and specialist vehicles fighting a significant and challenging fire."

At 3.21am, Mr Hunter said the teams were 'scaling down': "Bury Scrap Yard fire being scaled down.

Bury Times: Pimhole Road fire. Pictures by Phil Taylor.Pimhole Road fire. Pictures by Phil Taylor.

"Fantastic effort from Greater Manchester and Lancashire crews, our control operators at North West Fire Control, Greater Manchester Police, Environment Agency and HART team."

Taps in the area are not running or just trickling as the system suffers low pressure. United Utilities are sending emergency water to pump into the network and restore supplies to properties. 

United Utilities said: "You may have noticed that your water has gone off or it’s coming out your tap in a trickle. This is due to the fire service using water from our network to fight a large fire on Pimhole Road. We are sorry for any inconvenience.

"We will be sending our ‘water on wheels’ vehicles to the area to pump water into the network to help maintain and restore supplies to as many properties as possible. Thank you for your patience."

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service has issued advice for those in the area today, tweeting: "Avoid driving over any hoses where possible.

"If it’s necessary to drive over the hose please do so very slowly and take care.

"Use hose ramps where you can.

"In no circumstances drive over an inflated yellow hose unless there’s a ramp."

Roads remain closed in the area, which will affect commutes.

Transport for Greater Manchester has reported that the A58 Rochdale Road is still closed between Heywood Street and Wash Lane. The area is expected to stay closed for the next few hours.

For those leaving the M66 at Junction 2, there are still lane closures in place leading to the closure of Rochdale Road.

Diamond Bus services are being diverted this morning. The 163 and 471 buses are being diverted via Bond Street and Wash Lane in both directions. Long delays are anticipated.

Bury Times: Pimhole Road fire. Pictures by Phil Taylor.Pimhole Road fire. Pictures by Phil Taylor.

Praise has flooded in on social media for the firefighters wrestling with the blaze. As the emergency services remain at the scene, The Salvation Army is on hand provding much-needed supplies.

More to follow as we get updates on this.