THE aftermath of a 200-car blaze which sent a tower of black smoke billowing over several East Lancashire towns could now threaten wildlife at a beauty spot.

Environment Agency officials fear water polluted by petrol as it was used to tackle the massive inferno at Altham Car Dismantlers on the Moorfield Industrial Estate in Altham could seep into the nearby Leeds and Liverpool Canal.

Sixty fire officers from across Lancashire tackled the blaze and two crews were still at the scene today damping down.

Fire chiefs believe the blaze was started at around 4pm yesterday by sparks from a piece of cutting equipment.

The fire quickly spread to 200 cars around it, many of which were little more than wrecks stacked five high.

A massive column of thick, acrid smoke soon spread across Accrington and Hapton, prompting local authority chiefs to prepare to evacuate residents.

Traffic on the M65 was reduced to 50 mph then 30mph as smoke drifted across both carriageways between junctions seven and eight.

At the height of the blaze, eight fire engines and several support units from across Lancashire were at the scene while the police helicopter circled above monitoring where the drifting smoke.

Divisional Commander Mick Frankland said fire crews initially had difficulty sourcing water which allowed the fire to spread.

He said: "Fires like this are always tricky. Once one car was set alight, others soon followed because they are kept in such close proximity.

"What we were faced with was a 40 metre long row of cars stacked five high, all burning.

"We also had to deal with the fact that some of the cars still had petrol in their tanks." The fire, which attracted crowds of interested people before police sealed off the industrial estate at 5.30pm, was brought under control by 8pm. Mr Frankland added: "Two engines stayed overnight to damp down and specialist officers will be arriving today to investigate the cause of the fire.

"We believe it may have been caused by sparks from cutting equipment setting fire to one of the cars but that has to be investigated fully yet.

"The nearby local authorities put Operation Merlin into action, meaning they were in a position to evacuate residents if the smoke came down to ground level.

"The Environment Agency is also trying to make sure none of the polluted water seeps into the sewers or the canal. We did try to recycle as much water as we could."

One bystander, Mary Schofield, said: "The smoke was so thick and so high it covered Accrington and beyond.

"When you were under the worst of the smoke, the sun was being blocked out.

"It was such a clear day, you could see the smoke for miles.

"It is a wonder no one had an accident on the M65."

The owner of the yard, which is one of several on the estate, was unavailable for comment.

Insp Steve Sansbury, Lancashire Police's force incident manager, said: "Several of our officers attended the scene while the force's police helicopter was also used."

Mr Frankland added that many such companies were not insured due to the high risk of the property stored at their sites.