200 firefighters were deployed to tackle a blaze at student accommodation in Bolton on Friday night.
Dozens of students of the University of Bolton were evacuated from the nightmare scene as a fire engulfed their entire building.
Videos from the scene appear to show the fire spreading to every floor of the six-storey building, known as The Cube, within minutes. Emergency services were called to the fire at 8.30pm on Friday night and were still fighting to bring it under control at 5.30am this morning.
At its height, around 200 firefighters were tackling the blaze, with 40 fire engines, three aerial platforms and other specialist appliances in use, confirmed the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service.
The nature of the fire has led to many on social media comparing it to the Grenfell fire, which killed over 70 people in London two years ago.
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Assistant Chief Fire Officer Tony Hunter, said: “Our crews have done a fantastic job bringing this fire under control, in what have been very challenging circumstances. I want to praise their swift action, which has prevented the fire from spreading to adjacent buildings.
“I’m pleased the say that we are now scaling back our response, and we will remain at the scene for the next few hours as we tackle the remaining pockets of fire.
Feature image courtesy of Great Manchester Fire and Rescue Service.
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