Human remains have been discovered by workers demolishing a mill in Oldham as police said four Vietnamese people were missing.
The finding came 10 weeks after a fire at the property in Bismark House Mill on Bower Street.
Greater Manchester police (GMP) said they received a report last week that four Vietnamese people were missing and “may have been involved in a fire”.
On 7 May firefighters from Greater Manchester fire and rescue service (GMFRS) attended a fire at the mill that took four days to extinguish.
At that point it was not believed anyone was inside, GMP said. Detectives are now working to establish the identities of the deceased as well as the circumstances of the blaze.
The GMP assistant chief constable Rob Potts said: “Victims and the bereaved are at the forefront of our investigations into deaths. As such, while work is ongoing to confirm the identity of the deceased, we are liaising with partner agencies to ensure potential family members in Vietnam are fully informed and supported.
“This news will understandably impact both the local and wider community. I can reassure members of the public that this has been declared a major incident to ensure both GMP and partner agencies respond to this incident in the most effective way and that specialist officers are following every line of inquiry to confirm the identity of the deceased, if anyone else was inside the mill during the fire, and the full circumstances surrounding that fire. Any criminal offences identified as part of their investigation will be immediately and appropriately progressed.”
The mill used to house various companies, including a tile shop and a laser game centre. There were also serviced offices and storage units on site.
On 7 May, GMFRS said it had dispatched 10 fire engines to tackle a huge blaze at the mill at 2.15am that morning, as well as three aerial appliances and additional support vehicles. “Our North West Fire Control operators received almost 70 999 calls from concerned members of the public about what was a significant fire,” said the area manager, Ben Levy.
He appealed for anyone with information to contact the force directly, or anonymously, via Crimestoppers, adding that police were particularly interested in hearing from anyone who knew how the building was being used in the lead-up to 7 May or has information about the fire.
Because of previous contact relating to the fire and missing persons, this incident has been referred to GMP’s professional standards branch for review, the force said.
Speaking to media at the site, the assistant chief fire officer for GMFRS Leon Parkes said: “When the fire service arrived at the scene they were met with a very serious fire, a well-developed fire, in the building.
“A decision was made at that time not to permit any firefighters into the building for two reasons – firstly, the fire was well-developed and was continuing to grow and, secondly, there was some concern about the structural stability of the building.
“We fought the fire over four days from the outside before handing the premises over.
“These are the correct procedures that are followed in situations like this.
“Given the devastation that has happened here it is right that we are absolutely certain and that is why we are now reviewing the details of the incident and how we managed the incident.”
