Drone footage shows aftermath of Maghull town hall destroyed by fire
Drone footage has captured the aftermath of a large fire engulfing a town hall in Merseyside.
The blaze at Maghull Town Hall on Old Hall Road erupted at around 11.55am, sending a tower of black smoke into the air.
Flames could be seen chewing through the roof of the three-storey building, which fire services described as ‘well alight’.
Emergency services confirmed no one was in the hall when the blaze broke, but people in the adjoining leisure centre were evacuated.
Residents of Maghull, about seven miles north of Liverpool, gathered outside a cordon around the area to watch the firefighters at the scene.
Among them was a woman who was ‘weeping’ at the sight of the community building being torn by the fire, the Liverpool Echo reported.
People were warned to avoid the area and keep windows and doors shut so they do not inhale smoke.
Drone footage uploaded to YouTube by The Propeller Fella, an account that films Southport, shows the roof completely charred and dozens of solar panels melted.
Firefighters can be seen in the footage dousing the blackened roof from three angles, with eight fire engines at the scene.
In its most recent update at 4.10pm, the fire service said Old Hall Road will remain closed.
‘The incident was scaled down to five fire engines and one aerial appliance,’ officials added.
‘There are currently four fire engines and one aerial appliance at scene as crews work hard to bring this incident to a safe conclusion.’
The council said: ‘We would once again like to place on record our thanks to our staff at Meadows Leisure Centre who acted swiftly and calmly to evacuate everyone safely from the building.
‘While the Centre remains closed to the public, the building will be open between 10am and 2pm tomorrow for those who were evacuated to collect their belongings which were left behind.’
Active Selfton said Meadows Leisure Centre will be closed today and tomorrow.
‘We will update you shortly on the reopening of activities,’ the council’s fitness programme said.
‘We would like to sincerely thank our staff and customers for their prompt response.’
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