Investigation begins into huge fire involving 100 cars at Chesterfield industrial estate

Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service (DFRS) and Derbyshire Police have confirmed that their joint investigation is underway into the fire at a scrap yard on the Armytage Industrial Estate at Station Road, Old Whittington.

Fire crews were first called to the site at 6.10am on Monday, February 13 – remaining at the site for several hours as they battled to get the blaze under control.

One Old Whittington resident told the Derbyshire Times that there were “massive smoke clouds rolling overhead since I went out at 6am” – along with “occasional small explosions”, “acrid smoke” and “lots of emergency sirens.”

DFRS reported that around 100 cars had caught alight as flames spread through the scrap yard – with aerial photos showing a series of burnt-out wrecks left across the site.

The emergency services evacuated a number of neighbouring businesses as they responded to the incident – with employees allowed to return to the site almost 10 hours after the fire was first reported.

Several nearby roads were also closed to allow fire crews to access the site – causing severe congestion in the area around Station Road for much of the day.

The scrap yard itself is situated close to the rail tracks that run between Chesterfield and Sheffield. Both Northern Rail and East Midlands Railway were forced to amend, cancel and divert their services between these stations while the fire continued to rage. Normal services between Chesterfield and Sheffield did resume later that afternoon.

Firefighters from Chesterfield, Staveley, Matlock and Clowne were among the first at the scene. Clay Cross crews also arrived with a water carrier, and a command support unit was mobilised from Long Eaton.

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They were supported by several crews from neighbouring counties – with a total of nine crews fighting the blaze at its height. DFRS firefighters were supported by their counterparts from South Yorkshire's Low Edges and Birley, and Nottinghamshire's Mansfield stations.

Residents were instructed to keep their windows and doors closed throughout the day – and urged to avoid the area while the emergency services were in attendance. A DFRS spokesperson also confirmed that no one was injured as a result of the fire.