SIXTY firefighters tackled a blaze at a Darwen mill.

They spent eight hours controlling toxic fumes at Balle Street Mill, where fibre glass front doors, awnings and plastic mouldings are manufactured.

The third floor of the mill caught fire when a machine burst into flames just before 9am today, firefighters said.

Fifty members of staff from Octaveward plastic mouldings were safely evacuated.

Paramedics remained at the scene until 10am as a precaution.

Lancashire Fire and Rescue also sent the Hazardous Materials and Environ-mental Protection Unit, over fears about gases released from burning plastics.

A spokesman said no significantly harmful substances, such as asbestos, were involved.

Firefighter Mick Frankland said: “The third floor of the building was quite difficult to access and the fire was located in a far corner of the third storey.

“We used the aerial ladder platform to extinguish the fire and within a few hours it was under control.

“Due to the type of the products which are made in the building, we had concerns about toxicity and we stayed on the scene until about 5pm making sure the scene was safe.

"We will be carrying out a full fire investigation.”

A spokesman for Lancashire Fire and Rescue said more than a dozen fire engines attended the scene.

The spokeman said: “These products wouldn’t create fumes that are significantly harmful to people but we were concerned about fumes being released into the environment and entering the watercourses.”

No one was available for comment from Octaveward.