Derelict mill in Whitworth struck by arson again

Date published: 27 August 2010

Sunnyside Works, part of Albert Mill on Market Street, Whitworth, was the subject of another arson attack last night. Ten fire engines, an Aerial Ladder Platform plus support vehicles and their crews, approaching eighty firefighters in total, dealt with the blaze at the derelict mill, already the subject of a major blaze on 15th May last year, when Bacup firefighter Chris Farrow was injured there in a fall when responding to an incident.

The mill is a three-storey stone building with a slate roof, but the sloping site results in there being another three storeys below ground level. The fire was started in the first storey above ground and rapidly engulfed that floor and spread to the floor above and ultimately the roof, part of which collapsed. The first of several 999 calls was logged at 8.19pm and firefighters battled the blaze throughout the night, remaining on site the following morning to deal with any residual pockets of fire and to progress with the collection of evidence for the investigation into the fire.

At the height of the fire all three floors above ground level were engulfed and only the fact that the ground and basement floors were of stone prevented the falling debris and embers from spreading the fire to the basement floors. 

There is no more powerful statement of the feelings of firefighters and communities about fires started deliberately than that made by Firefighter Chris Farrow shortly after the incident in which he sustained severe injuries,

“I have been asked for my views on whoever started the fire that resulted in my injury. All I can say is that as a firefighter committed to making a positive contribution to the communities we serve it’s difficult to understand what motivates someone to take the opposite view. I wonder whether they realise the possible consequences of arson and that it can put firefighters’ lives on the line in addition to destroying property and endangering the livelihoods of those affected by businesses closed due to arson.”

Chris has since recovered from his injuries and returned to the job that he loves.