Huge fire engulfs abandoned school building
A fire has torn through an abandoned secondary school in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire.
Footage from the Easter Monday night blaze showed flames bursting out the top of Birkdale High School, sending black smoke billowing into the sky.
Fire and rescue service officials confirmed they received ‘reports of a derelict building on fire’ in a statement issued at 10.51pm.
‘Fire was in upper floors and roof of derelict building approx 60mx30m,’ the statement said.
‘There were no persons involved in the incident.’
The cause of the fire is unclear.
Councillors decided to close Birkdale High School on Wheelwright Drive as pupil numbers were only just over 400, with 1,000 places at other local schools.
Pupils, teachers and parents pounded the pavement in protest, with a petition receiving hundreds of signatures.
Deputy head Stuart Boothman told the Yorkshire Evening Post in 2010 that closing the school doors would mean students travelling miles to get to school.
‘The kids are upset. This year we have had our best ever exam results at our school,’ he told the newspaper.
‘The short-term impact will be on older children because it will affect GCSEs but it will have a long-term impact on all pupils.’
Kirklees Council closed the secondary school on August 31, 2011.
West Yorkshire Fire And Rescue Service has been approached for comment.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.