Investigation into cause of 'Firework Factory' blaze in Southampton continues

But the noise that shattered the early morning peace in Southampton yesterday was the result of an explosion that destroyed a business and sent dozens of fireworks soaring into the sky.

More than 70 firefighters were called to the Flower Factory and Southern Firework Factory shops in Bitterne to battle a fierce blaze that lasted for more than ten hours.

And today an investigation was continuing into the cause of the fire that forced dozens of residents to evacuate their homes.

No one was hurt but the blaze reduced two businesses owned by the same person to a charred ruin and caused thousands of pounds of damage.

The owner of the Southern Firework Factory said he was "not doing good" outside of his destroyed business today which remains sealed off.

He declined to comment further but said he would be issuing a statement shortly.

Parts of the Kwik-Fit centre near the firework shop has also been taped off by police to restrict access to the scene where the blaze took place, but is still open today.

Bitterne Road West has been reopened.

Last night questions were being asked about why highly-explosive material was allowed to be kept in a building surrounded by homes, shops and schools.

Phil Coley, 72, of Quayside, Southampton, said: “I looked out of my French windows and saw thick black smoke drifting across the River Itchen - I thought a boat had gone up.

“I can’t believe that a business was permitted to keep combustible material in the middle of a built-up area.”

Jon Searle, 55, of Athelstan Road, added: “I never had any concerns about the premises - until today.

“When something like this happens you wonder how the owner of the business got permission to sell fireworks in a residential area, especially in the quantity that he did. I wouldn’t want to see fireworks sold there again.”

One of Mr Searle’s neighbours expressed similar views.

Sher said: “My house shook when the other building exploded. It was too close to people’s homes - he shouldn’t have been permitted to sell fireworks in such a built-up area.”

Despite its name the business was a shop that sold flowers as well as fireworks.

The drama began at about 5am, when a driver making his usual delivery to the premises in Bitterne Road West noticed something was wrong.

Spotting a fire inside he called the emergency services, who arrived minutes later and started to seal off streets surrounding the site.

Police began to evacuate nearby properties as firefighters moved in to tackle the flames, which was sending a plume of thick black smoke over hundreds of homes in the area.

At this point the early morning calm was shattered by a massive explosion that sent residents, police officers and firefighters diving for cover.

Flames shot more than 20ft into the air as dozens of fireworks stored in the Southern Firework Factory were unleashed into the sky while debris was hurled across the surrounding area.

For at least ten minutes fireworks continued to shoot into the morning sky, while the noise of the explosion could be heard for miles around.

Soon 13 fire crews from as far away as Winchester and Portchester were on the scene with horrified residents watching the drama from behind the police cordons.

Bitterne railway station remained open but the fire caused rush-hour chaos for thousands of drivers trying to get into the city centre, with Bitterne Road West, Bullar Road, Athelstan Road and Maybray King Way all closed.

Southampton City Council lifted the tolls on the Itchen Bridge to ease congestion as congestion spread to other parts of the city.

Bitterne Manor Primary and Beechwood Junior schools were both closed as a result of the fire, with all homes and businesses within 100m of the Flower Factory site evacuated.

Firefighters using hydraulic platforms fought the fire from above, using so much water from hydrants that it caused a temporary loss of supply to some residents in the area.

The fire repeatedly died down, only to flare up again minutes later.

Hampshire Fire and Rescue Services said the dangerous state of the building meant investigators might not be able to access the site until today.

Last night the cause of the blaze remained unknown.

Those evacuated included Debbie Slater, 32, and her 11-year-old daughter Kaci who were told to flee their Bullar Road home.

Debbie said: “I was woken by my dog barking at 5.30am and saw flames when I looked out of the window.

“It was crazy, like something out of a film. The noise sounded like bombs going off.

“The firework business has been there for several years and I’m not aware of any previous incidents. It’s never given me cause for concern.”

Bitterne Road West is normally one of the busiest roads in the city, but was eerily quiet for most of yesterday.

Most of the local shops were inside the initial cordons and almost all the businesses stayed shut, costing the owners thousands of pounds in lost trade.

Throughout the morning spectators gathered at the cordons to watch the fire as it raged inside the gutted buildings.

Passengers on aircraft coming into land at Southampton Airport had a bird’s eye view of the blaze, with planes flying directly over the scene.

Richard Yates, who was travelling into the city by train from Portchester, said: “As soon as I saw the smoke I knew it was the Fireworks Factory.

“I got here and there were flames about 20ft high, I watched it fall apart.”

Arron Sandhu, from nearby Rampart Road, said he was woken by the huge bang caused by the fireworks going off.

“I woke up in shock, thinking ‘what was that bang’? Twenty fireworks went off at once.”

A man living almost opposite the scene of the blaze added: “I saw someone who I think was the owner.

"He was very distressed and was holding his head in his hands.”

Fellow resident Ian Sainsbury added: “I was woken soon after 5am by the sound of multiple explosions.

“I looked out the window and saw black rancid smoke billowing across the River Itchen.

“Fireworks were shooting in all directions. It’s lucky it doesn’t seem to have caught alight the tyre firm that’s almost next door or it could have been much worse.

“Fire and police were quickly on the scene.

“My son’s school is nearby and that has been closed for the day because of the smoke that was billowing across it.”

The blaze spread to a neighbouring office building but the next business along the road, a car sales showroom, appeared to be undamaged.

Andy Mitchell, of Garfield Road, said: “My house started shaking. My 11-year-old son was too scared to get out of bed and take a look.”

Asked about fireworks being kept in a residential area he added: “I did think it was a bit odd.

“But I was confident that the regulations would control stock levels and ensure that if anything happened it wouldn’t cause too much devastation to the local community.

“My view hasn’t changed. The only devastation is to the building itself.

“It used to be a tool hire place with an outside cage packed with Calor Gas bottles. That to me was more of a worry.”