THE owner of a wholesale grocery business was today counting the cost of a fire which severely damaged a warehouse.

An estimated quarter of million pounds worth of stock and equipment is thought to have been damaged or destroyed in the blaze at Fred Lawson frozen foods, Pendle Trading Estate, Chatburn, on Saturday afternoon.

The company is owned by Matthew Lewis, of Newton, Slaidburn.

He was said to be busy clearing up and unavailable for comment today.

Six fire engines from East Lancashire and 40 firefighters helped bring the fire under control during a three-and-a-half-hour operation.

Workers had left the single-storey building an hour before firefighters were alerted by the fire alarm system at 12.46.

The fire was started by an electrical fault in one of fleet of six vans which were parked in the unit, and spread to the other vehicles, the stock and building itself.

Station officer Dave McGrath, of Clitheroe fire station, said: "When we arrived thick, black smoke was pouring out of the building from all angles.

"There was a small amount of asbestos in the roof but it did not pose a threat to public safety.

"We managed to save the stock in the fridges but the delivery fleet is severely damaged, along with a lot of stock and the roof."

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