Firefighters tackled a large blaze in a city centre building in Leeds on Saturday night.
The blaze broke out on the top floors of a derelict high-rise building in Cookridge Street, near the city’s Millennium Square, at 7.47pm.
A number of nearby pubs and restaurants were evacuated, the fire service said.
Ten fire engines were sent and a safety cordon was put in place as the fire service said the structure was “potentially unsafe”.
West Yorkshire fire service wrote on Twitter: “Firefighters continue to battle fire at city centre building and are working with @WestYorksPolice, @YorksAmbulance and the Hazardous Area Response Team (HART).
“Cordon is in place and local buildings evacuated.”
Leeds council urged people to keep away from the area around Millennium Square.
BREAKING: Millennium Square #Leeds fully evacuated as fire continues to spread.
— Josh Gardner (@MediaJoshG) October 15, 2022
More fire brigades on scene now. pic.twitter.com/7slUq3ae76
James Lewis, leader of Leeds city council, said the fire was in the Leonardo building, a former council property sold to developers that currently lies empty, the BBC reported.
Lewis added: “I’m hugely thankful for the quick response from the fire service, they stopped it becoming a much more serious and destructive fire. I’m sure it was very worrying for people nearby.
“Certainly it’s a very serious incident and had the fire service not reacted so quickly, it could have been much more devastating.”
Will Dunaway, an 18-year-old student, said he had left a restaurant on nearby Oxford Place with his family when he witnessed the flames.
He told the BBC: “It looked like it was the top part that was on fire, the bottom part looked pretty intact. There was a lot of crackling and some explosions, like a popping sound.
“Nobody appeared to be in any danger as far as I could tell.”
