Town centre traders are fearing for their future after a fire broke out yesterday at the scene of the New Year gas explosion.
Lunchtime traffic was brought to a standstill around the site on Smithfield Road after the fire started at 12.10pm, and all roads in the area were closed while emergency services dealt with the blaze. It is believed to have been caused by sparks from machinery setting insulation alight.
Black smoke was seen pouring out into the sky and nearby traders said they were fearful for their own safety and their premises.
Joyce Matthews, from Simply Jays Wools on Hills Lane, is just three doors down from the site.
“My friend came rushing round and said what had happened. We went outside and it looked like the volcanic ash cloud, the smoke was so thick you couldn’t even see Morris’ across the road.
“I thought we couldn’t get anything else after the explosion and we were worried the fire might have caught one of the upstairs timbers and that we would all go up in smoke.”
She said after the explosion on January 3 trade dipped and it was just starting to get back to normal.
“Now this has happened I don’t know what will happen,” she added.
Roy Jones, owner of the Old Maltings Gift Shop, said he feared the fire could be the end for many businesses in the area.
“Trade has been really down since the beginning of the year and now with this fire it’s just a continuation of the nightmare. It just seems like it’s one thing after another really.”
Hayley Dunbar, from Parlour Hairdressers, said: “Since the explosion it has made us even more nervous. It was like a ghost town down here afterwards, trade has picked up but this feels like a case of ‘Here we go again’.”
The Shrewsbury Hotel was evacuated as a precaution in the incident and the Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service had the fire under control by 1pm.
Andy Johnson, area manager of the fire service, said: “It was materials on the site related to the explosion. It was a fire in the footprint of the building involved in the explosion.”
Carl Huntley, from Base Architecture which is dealing with demolition at the explosion site, said: “We were cutting steel on the first floor. A spark flew and caught on some old insulation. The flames were quite big but the fire wasn’t that bad.”
A full investigation will be carried out by the contractors Benson Brothers to establish how the blaze started.
Twelve people were hospitalised after the incident in January when a gas explosion devastated a building housing a former gym and upstairs flat.Roads were closed for weeks and many businesses shut while the site was made safe and investigations carried out. Work to demolish the building began earlier this month.
The Health and Safety Executive is still working to establish the cause of the original explosion.
By Anna Williams and David Seadon
