Carpet factory fire started accidentally in skip

A fire at a carpet recycling factory which led to almost a hundred 999 calls was believed to have started accidentally in a skip.

Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service was called to a unit on the Lodge Farm Industrial Estate in Duston, about two miles (3km) north-west of Northampton town centre at about 19:00 BST on Saturday.

The service had the fire under control and scaled down its operation by 23:00, however hotspots remained at 02:00 on Sunday.

A fire investigation carried out on Sunday found the fire was not started deliberately.

During the fire, residents were advised to keep windows and doors closed and the A428 Harleston Road was closed.

Crews were expected to return to the site on Monday to monitor temperatures and dampen down any remaining small hotspots.

Justin Abbott, station manager, said: "This was a large industrial fire which required a lot of resource to bring it under control and stop it from spreading. Thankfully the factory was closed at the time the fire started and there was no injuries.

"I want to thank the hard work of all our fire crews for their professional response, and also to thank the members of the public for their patience and understanding over the weekend while we dealt with the incident."

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