Inspectors say seared Sandos won't be demolished

Fires ripped through Sandos takeaway on Church Street, destroying the roof, but Preston Council inspectors say the building is no longer in danger of being knocked down.

Building inspectors from the council and demolition companies have been inspecting the building since the incident on May 5 and have now decided the damage was not severe enough to get rid of the building.

A spokesman for Preston council said: “The latest from Building Control is that the building is safe and structurally sound, and as far as we are aware there are no plans to demolish the building.”

A fire investigator from Lancashire Fire Service has now been given access to the building to begin his work into finding the cause of the blaze after inspectors denied them access to the building due to safety concerns.

As of yet, the cause of the fire has not been determined and the fire inspector’s investigation is still ongoing.

It’s after a fire broke out on the bottom floor of the takeaway on the corner of Manchester Road at about 10.40am.

Smoke from the fire could be seen for miles around as crews from made their way to the scene.

They were forced to call for back up from Penwortham and Bamber Bridge when they realised the extent of the incident.

An aerial ladder platform from Hyndburn was also brought in to help fight the flames from above in an operation which lasted more than four hours and occupied a total of eight crews.

Police were called in to close off several of the surrounding roads as well as evacuate neighbouring buildings as the fire threatened to spread. Manchester Road, Tithebarn Street and Church Street were all closed.

The fire service admits its investigation into Sandos may now be delayed as they look into the cause of another major fire near Bamber Bridge.

The fire started in the early hours of yesterday morning and almost completely destroyed the plant at Total Polyfilm Ltd on Walton Summit Industrial Estate.