London Shop Blaze with Flats Above Doused by 70 Firefighters

October 12, 2022

Part of a ground-floor shop and a five-roomed flat on the first floor of the building were alight. The fire is believed to have been accidental and caused by the ignition of grease within the the kitchen extraction system.

Ten fire engines and around 70 firefighters were called to a fire at a shop with flats above on Uxbridge Road in Shepherd’s Bush.

Part of a ground-floor shop and a five-roomed flat on the first floor of the building were alight according to the London Fire Brigade. A child, a man, and two women left the property before the Brigade arrived and were treated on scene by London Ambulance Service crews. Firefighters carried out salvage operations in the basement of the property to minimise damage.

The Brigade’s 999 Control Officers took 22 calls to the blaze. Station Commander David Reed, who was at the scene, said:

“The fire was producing heavy smoke in the local area. Residents were advised to keep their windows and doors closed.”

“Firefighters used one of the Brigade’s 32-metre turntable ladders as an observation tower and thermal imaging cameras to check for fire spread. Uxbridge Road is closed between Devonport Road and Ingersoll Road whilst crews continue to work to make the scene safe. Please avoid the area where possible.”

The Brigade was called at 1557 and the fire was under control by 1913. Fire crews from Acton, Paddington, Richmond, Wandsworth and surrounding fire stations attended the scene.

The fire is believed to have been accidental and caused by the ignition of grease within the the extraction system.

How can this shop and commercial kitchens everywhere minimise their fire risk?

Kitchen grease filters are one of the first lines of defense when it comes to fire safety. Kitchen grease is highly flammable, therefore replacing and maintaining a restaurant’s grease filters is an important step in reducing the risk of kitchen grease fires such as the one in this story.

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These bio-degradable wool filters significantly reduce the need to clean (or exchange) filter frames. The amount of grease entering your kitchen exhaust system is also minimised, leading to less frequent duct cleaning. Our patented stainless-steel frames are easy to use and come with the peace of mind that they are: