INVESTIGATIONS are continuing into a blaze which caused £10,000 in damage at Accrington's outdoor market development.

A spokesman today said the May completion date for the development would not be affected by the fire and discussions would be held in the coming days with police with regard to strengthening security on site.

Peel Street in the town centre had to be sealed off for an hour as fire crews tackled the building site blaze on Wednesday night.

Fire crews from Accrington and Oswaldtwistle were called out around 8.15pm on Wednesday after two steel builders' storage cabins caught fire. Both were destroyed.

Police closed the street because one of the cabins contained a gas cylinder.

Sub-officer Terry Nightingale, of Accrington Station, said: "We got to the cylinder before it was subjected to any heat." He added that the fire was initially being treated as suspicious and officers would be visiting the site to carry out further investigations.

Contractors will also carry out their own investigations into the cause of the fire and full extent of the damage.

The spokesman said security measures were in place at the site and it was possible the blaze was not caused by vandals. One suggestion was that a generator may have overheated.

He said: "The contractors, Hyndburn First and police are going to be having discussions in the next few days about how we can continue to strengthen security for the site over the next four months.

"Security is a matter of continuing vigilance for the next six months because as the development progresses there is an increasing value to the buildings."