Fire guts shoe store

An investigation has begun into the cause of a fire that destroyed a shoe warehouse in Blackpool.

At its height more than 50 firefighters tackled the fire at the three-storey building, which broke out on Tuesday night.

Nearby buildings were evacuated because of concerns the fire could spread from The Shoemarket in Talbot Road.

On Wednesday Lancashire Fire and Rescue said it is not believed that there was anyone in the building.

Floors collapsed

Station Officer Ian Richards said they were alerted to the fire at about 2300 BST on Tuesday.

He told BBC News Online: "When we arrived we could see smoke coming from the building, from quite a distance, so we knew we were dealing with a serious fire.

"Looking at the rear of the building we could see flames coming from the second floor and out through the roof, and it was clear the fire had originated on the first floor."

He said the store was full with stock and floors collapsed because its weight added with the water needed to tackle fire.

Staff interviewed

"At one point we had to evacuate firefighters from the building because the floors were collapsing," said Mr Richards.

"However, once this had happened they were able to get back in to get the fire under control."

Three fire crews were still at the scene on Wednesday morning, damping down.

Fire investigators are due to interview shop staff later in the inquiry to establish how the fire began.