Polarbear
Established Member
Just passed Newton Abbot station on a bus & it looks like the formerly engine shed is well alight. Fire brigade in attendance.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-45932338Residents of Newton Abbot have been evacuated from their homes and a nearby road has been shut after a fire at a derelict warehouse continues to spread.
Firefighters are now into their sixth hour of tackling the fire which has continued to spread through the historic Victorian Carriage and Repair Shed.
The fire was first reported at 1.15pm. The roof has now collapsed almost all the way along the building and the fire shows no sign of abating...
looks like a major event with fire crews pulled from a large areaHuge clouds of smoke have been billowing from a disused warehouse which has caught fire.
Eight fire crews are tackling the blaze at the Brunel Industrial Estate in Newton Abbot, Devon.
There are no reports of injuries, Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service said. It sent crews from Newton Abbot, Torquay, Paignton, Bovey Tracey, Totnes, Danes Castle and Teignmouth...
I’m sure I read somewhere that the shed was actually due for demolition in the coming days as well
It makes no difference. The original building was always going to come down entirely with no facade walls preserved except for a small section of stone wall at The south end which stands as a separate structure. The latest plans just show an exterior finish for the new building in brick that reflects the old building details including the arched windows on the street side. The plans originally published showed a much plainer finish in brick without the arch forms and windows.Is this fire perhaps slightly convenient then? Saves them from having to preserve the facade?
It makes no difference. The original building was always going to come down entirely with no facade walls preserved except for a small section of stone wall at The south end which stands as a separate structure. The latest plans just show an exterior finish for the new building in brick that reflects the old building details including the arched windows on the street side. The plans originally published showed a much plainer finish in brick without the arch forms and windows.
Agreed, I suspect the demolition cost and timescales will actually have gone up.I think people are right to be suspicious: just read 'Nooks and Corners' in Private Eye and it's full of tales of developers allowing listed buildings to decay or be vandalised in order to de-facto demolish a building they otherwise couldn't.
However, that probably isn't the case here given it was due to be demolished and, as righly mentioned, this makes the process far more difficult and costly. Even the suggestion that asbestos might have been in the structure will entail specialist assessment and searches before the regular demolition men can get to work.
They will, because now the asbestos sheets that were generally whole and sound are now small bits and dust, so will need great (and more expensive) removal. Also any brickwork or steel work has now been weakened and made unstable so needing more careful demolition.Agreed, I suspect the demolition cost and timescales will actually have gone up.