Inchcape issues statement after large fire breaks out at Jaguar Land Rover car dealership in Preston

Nine fire engines along with two aerial ladder platforms attended a commercial building fire in Bluebell Way at around 1am on Friday (April 7).

The Jaguar Land Rover car dealership was engulfed in flames when crews arrived, sending large plumes of smoke into the sky.

At 6am, the incident was scaled back, with four fire engines and an aerial ladder platform remaining at the scene.

The fire service believe the incident did not involve electric vehicles, but a “full fire investigation will confirm [the] likely ignition source in due course.”

The dealership is one of the largest in the area and is owned by retailer group Inchcape.

A spokesperson for Inchcape said: “We are very glad that all our colleagues and the wider community are safe, and no one was hurt in the fire that broke out at our Inchcape Jaguar Land Rover operation in Preston overnight.

“We would like to thank the emergency services and the various support agencies for their hard work and dedication in helping contain the damage.

“It is too early to speculate on exactly what happened, however we are working in conjunction with various experts to determine the cause.

“As we work through this the business will be closed temporarily and we will of course support our team and communicate with our customers throughout this period.”

Firefighters from Fulwood, Preston, Penwortham, Bamber Bridge, Longridge, Darwen, Blackburn, Hyndburn were in attendance at the height of the incident.

Crews used two hose reels, two jets and a stinger to extinguish the flames.

The LFRS Drone Team were also called to assist ground crews with aerial situational awareness.

Area manager John Rossen said: “We’ve had a large number of resources here through the night. We’ve had, at its height, nine fire engines, two aerial ladder platforms and a large number of specialist resources.

“My thanks go to all the firefighters who arrived quickly and worked really hard in very arduous conditions, and actually they’ve managed to suppress the fire, stop it from spreading and we’re in a much better place after a few hours of this fire going.”

He added: “My advice to members of the public is we will be here for a number of hours to come, please, if you notice any smoke, keep your doors and windows shut and also please try to stay away from the local area.”