Firefighters have been battling a large fire in South Tyneside overnight.
A premises on Pilgrimsway on the Bede Industrial Estate was reported ablaze at around half past midnight on Sunday morning by a member of the public. A total of 52 firefighters were involved with 10 fire crews sent to the area, two Aerial Ladder Platform vehicles and a drone unit called in.
At its height, the fire covered an area bigger than 10,000 square metres. Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service confirmed that two crews would remain at the site throughout the day to target 'hotspots'.
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In the early hours of Sunday morning, TWFRS warned residents to keep their doors and windows closed, advice which is still in place this morning.
Lynsey McVay, assistant chief fire officer who attended the scene, said: "This was a significant fire that was creating a lot of smoke and spreading very quickly due to the materials that were within the unit itself.
""It has been a large operation throughout the night with more than 50 firefighters attending the scene to get the quick spreading fire under control. There has been significant damage to the units affected but it has been contained to one premises.
"We will have a presence on the scene throughout Sunday and we would continue to ask residents in the area to keep your doors and windows shut due to smoke that remains in the area."
The cause of the fire is currently unknown, an an investigation is underway with a police cordon at the scene. Neil Hutchison, chief superintendent of Northumbria Police, said: "I would ask residents to continue to listen to the advice of the fire service and keep your doors and windows shut.
"We are committed to working alongside the fire service to ascertain the cause of the fire and whether it was malicious. Those enquiries are very much ongoing, I urge anyone who may have information about what caused this fire to contact us."
At this time, nobody is unaccounted for and there is no evidence to suggest that anyone was in the building during the fire itself.
