Go-kart owner pledges to rebuild

Nobody was injured in the blaze on Sunday night

The owner of a new go-karting facility which was destroyed by fire has vowed to reopen it again.

Adam Batchelor opened Racetrack Birmingham on Heath Street in Winson Green less than a month ago. It cost £500,000 and took years to develop.

But 80% of the building was damaged after a fire broke out at the premises on Sunday night.

Mr Batchelor said it had been a "horrific" time but added: "We will get it open again. We will continue."

'A mess'

At its height, 150 fire fighters tackled the blaze which involved tyres and petrol containers and engulfed the new go-karting facility.

Eyewitness Ivan Clements said: "I was about 30ft away and it was very intense heat.

"I could see through the burning holes in the building and there were quite intense flames. I could feel it physically, it was like being in a furnace."

Mr Batchelor, who designed the track and invested both his time and money to make it reality, viewed the scene on Monday.

He said: "We had just got it to the stage where the place was opened and it was top notch - one of the best go-karting centres in the country and now it's a mess.

"Its pretty horrid for me at the moment and pretty horrid for the guys on my team who are all worried about their jobs. But we'll pick ourselves up again and continue."

No-one was injured in the blaze and an investigation has been launched into the cause of the fire which started just after 2000 BST.