The roof of Forest Gate Police Station has been “completely destroyed” in a huge fire that tore through the structure on Wednesday.
Around 175 firefighters in 30 fire engines spent seven hours battling the blaze at the east London building in Romford Road, Forest Gate.
Around 60 people had been evacuated from the station before firefighters arrived, and nobody is believed to have been injured.
London Fire Brigade (LFB) is now investigating the fire, and says its probe may be lengthy “due to the scale and nature of the incident”.
The roof of the police station, which is where the fire was located, “was completely destroyed”, said LFB.
The brigade was called to the scene shortly after 4.15pm, and had the fire under control by around 11.10pm.
Forest gate police station on fire hope all are safe @SandringhamE7 pic.twitter.com/BXfuftZ9Pw
— robert cleary (@robertcleary11) March 6, 2024
Dramatic photos showed an inferno engulfing the roof of the red brick building, while huge plumes of black smoke issued high into the air.
Firefighters with breathing apparatus were seen going into the building, and were pictured tackling the huge flames from above the roof using turntable ladders.
Assistant Commissioner Pat Goulbourne, the Brigade's Incident Commander, said: "This was a challenging incident for firefighters as the fire was located in the roof of the police station.
“Crews made extensive use of our 32m and 64m ladders to attack the fire from above, and our drone team was deployed to provided us with a view of the scene as we responded."
"Throughout the incident a concern for our crews was the possibility of the fire spreading to adjacent properties.
BREAKING: Forest Gate Police Station on fire. Hope all @metpoliceuk and vicinity ok pic.twitter.com/ZdzgwSrApJ
— Shabnam (@ShabnamChaudhri) March 6, 2024
“Thanks to their hard work we were able to prevent that from occurring, and the fire was limited to the police station.
“Firefighters also conducted operations to ensure that essential police property within the building remained protected from the blaze and moved to a place of safety.
"Our specialist Fire Investigators will now begin to carry out their investigation into the cause of the fire. Due to the scale and nature of the incident, this is may be a protracted investigation."
Local people were told to keep windows and doors shut while the fire raged, while a number of nearby roads were also closed.
The Police have sealed off two blocks on Green St at the back of Forest Gate Police Station as the fire continues to rage and the roof gets ready to collapse. pic.twitter.com/hgFBrtH0wJ
— DaHalalCockney 🍉🔻⚒️ (@RizDaBiz1) March 6, 2024
Fire service experts are expected to trawl through the building when it is made safe in the hunt for clues as to the cause of the blaze.
Early reports on Wednesday night suggested the fire was not being treated as arson at that stage.
Locals gathered around the cordons as smoke continued to billow from the building.
A witness at the scene told the Standard: “The whole building looks ruined. It’s a big deal, the police will have lost files and who knows if there is evidence for cases that has perished in the fire. Also the police have no base now so they will have to be sent elsewhere I guess.”
30 fire engines and around 175 firefighters are now responding to the fire at a police station in Forest Gate. Please avoid the area as crews respond.
— London Fire Brigade (@LondonFire) March 6, 2024
Firefighters will likely be carrying out operations into the night. https://t.co/qzYYEIzP2s pic.twitter.com/yBM2KuMBsV
Meanwhile one local wrote on X as the fire raged on Wednesday: “From this angle, it seems like the roof of Forest Gate Police Station is gonna collapse anytime soon.
“As Police helicopters monitor the situation from above, brave Firefighters fight the ongoing blaze at Forest Gate Police Station.
“Fire Brigade have put up huge Spotlights in order to help fight the blaze”.
Commander Kyle Gordon, from Newham Police, said policing "continues as normal in Forest Gate".
