A GARAGE owner was today assessing the damage at his Great Harwood business after a blaze at the industrial unit last night.

Alan Calverley, 49, who owns Calverley's Premier Garage, Robert Street, was returning home from a football match when he received a call from the alarm company saying there was an intruder on the premises.

He said: "I was in a right good mood after the football and then returned to this nightmare."

Four fire engines and an incident support unit were called to the blaze around 10pm where firefighters had to cut through the roller shutter doors with a power saw to gain entry.

Two cars in the mechanical repairs part of the garage were damaged by fire along with equipment and tools.

A further 11 vehicles in the bodywork repairs side of the business were also damaged by heat and smoke.

Additional damage was also caused to the ceiling and fluorescent light strips which melted in the heat.

Mr Calverley, who has been at the site for seven years, was today waiting for insurance people to fully assess the damage.

He said he did not know whether the garage would be able to open later today.

Firefighters from Accrington and Great Harwood were at the scene for three hours yesterday.

Sub Officer George Mullaney said: "It was a car repair unit in the old Oxo building. It caused severe fire damage to the garage and smoke logged an adjacent unit full of cars.

"We are looking at this as an electrical fault and fire service staff will be returning to the unit for further investigation."