A FIRE ripped through the first floor of a town centre pub while regulars carried on drinking unaware in the bar downstairs.

The alarm was raised at 7.30pm yesterday after smoke was seen pouring out of windows at the Wheatsheaf, Mincing Lane, Blackburn.

Around 20 customers were evacuated from the three-floor pub which is a popular venue with the town's gay community.

Thousands of pounds worth of damage was caused to the Thwaites pub, a grade two listed building, which recently underwent a £60,000 refurbishment.

Two ambulances rushed to the scene after reports of people trapped, but no-one was injured.

Landlord Kenneth Pilling, who has run the pub for 11 years, said: "I am absolutely devastated. I have done 30 years in this business and have never seen anything like this."

Manager Graham Jones said: "We were alerted when a customer came in and said smoke was coming from the first floor windows.

"We followed standard procedure and evacuated the pub before the fire brigade arrived." A member of staff tried to fight the blaze with a fire extinguisher, but was fought back by the flames.

Bill Duffy, a receptionist at Mecca Bingo in nearby St Peter Street, said:" I saw smoke coming out of the top window and I rang the fire service. I came back out and the windows blew out. It sounded like a grenade going off."

The blaze broke out in a room used by a lodger on the first floor, but it was empty when the fire started.

It was gutted while the rest of the floor sustained severe fire and smoke damage. The ground floor was severely smoke and water-logged.

Firefighters were able to prevent the fire spreading to the pub's attic, but station officer David Bowes said: "It is a good job we got an early call.

"Had the call been delayed or in the early hours of the morning when the fire might have gone unnoticed, I think we would have lost the building.

An investigation is now being carried out. A police spokesman said the fire was not believed to be suspicious.

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