A ROAD has been closed as emergency services deal with a fire in Darwen.
Blackburn with Darwen Police posted about the incident on Hollins Grove Street this morning.
A road closure is currently in place on Hollins Grove Street in Darwen following a fire at a commercial premises.
— BwD Police (@BlackburnPolice) January 16, 2020
The road is closed between the junctions of Blackburn Road and Greenway Street.
Fire crews are at the scene with motorists advised to avoid the area. pic.twitter.com/puO00nFqJD
There is very slow traffic from Greenway Street to A666 Blackburn Road.
Fire crews are at the scene with motorists advised to avoid the area.
There are currently three fire engines on the site off Hollins Grove Street.
Jonny Ashton, Incident Commander, said: "It is a business of multiple occupancy and the main body of the fire is out.
"The issue is that there are hotspots in the roof.
"The roof is made of cement and asbestos and we need to strip it back to the roof timbers to make sure we get it all out.
"It has been confined to one unit and stopped it from spreading as it is an old stone building.
"We have representatives from Blackburn with Darwen Council down and they are satisfied any asbestos fibres have not got into the area and there is no risk to people locally.
"We have to dampen the roof down and ensure the asbestos does not escape.
"Our firefighters will be decontaminated when they leave the site.
"An investigation has been launched a cause of the fire is no known."
A cordon is still in place stopping motorists accessing the road
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