A huge fire at GEA Searle in Fareham, Hampshire, broke out late Wednesday night (26 February).
In a statement GEA Searle said: 'A fire was detected at GEA Searle in our Research & Development department. The Fire Brigade arrived within 10 minutes of the alarm being sounded, however the fire had taken hold by then and spread into the Final Assembly area. It took most of the night to put the fire out - mainly due to combustible roof materials. There were no injuries to any employees or any fire brigade personnel.'

Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service mobilised 15 appliances together with its Hazardous Materials Detection Identification and Monitoring Team (HAZMAT) to tackle the blaze.

Commercial director Richard Saunders said: 'Once the building was cleared, the damage wasn't as extensive as expected. 18 per cent of the site buildings were actually burned. (Expected duration for re-build will be 12 to 15 months).

The fire affected one end of the complex, the oldest part of the building which also contained the paint shop and coil coating area but the stores were unaffected. The firewall between the main assembly area and the stores did its job,
and GEA Searle paid tribute to the efforts of the fire service and the support, encouragement and offers of help from customers and suppliers.