Five-hour battle to put out fire (From Western Telegraph)

Five-hour battle to put out fire

FIRE crews battled for nearly five hours to bring a blaze under control last Wednesday, in what was described as the biggest response to a fire in Pembroke for many years.

Nobody was hurt in the blaze, which began in an unoccupied second floor flat above the Somerfield supermarket in Main Street.

"We arrived at the scene at 7.45pm," said Pembroke Dock fire officer, Robert Bellaby. "The fire was firmly under control at about 9.30pm, but crews were working there until shortly after midnight."

Around 45 officers attended the scene with six fire appliances and one turn-table in operation.

"It was a more difficult task than normal, because of where the fire was, as our access was from the back," explained officer Bellaby, who confirmed that water had to be pumped from the Mill Pond to tackle the blaze at the rear.

"There was also concern about the spread of the fire to other flats and the supermarket itself, but thankfully it didn't travel to that extent due to the work of our fire crews."

Manager at Somerfield supermarket, Mike Nichols, confirmed that apart from slight water damage, seeping through from the extensively damaged flat above, there was no fire damage to the store itself.

The cause of the incident, which also damaged two adjoining premises, is now being investigated by Pembroke Dock Police.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Pembroke Dock CID on 01646 682121.