Firefighters battle through the night to contain large blaze at Wigan borough wood recycling plant

The fire took hold at the premises of Bodens Wood Recycling at Lower Green Lane, Astley, at around 11.40pm.

At its height, six appliances and around 50 firefighters were at the scene, along with a high-water pump brought in from Stretford to pump water from the Bridgewater canal.

The fire severely damaged a building used to pulp the wood into sawdust, along with machinery and scrap timber.

Mark Anderson, watch manager at Leigh fire station, said the only way to get enough quantities of water to tackle the blaze at the remote location was to pump it from the canal around 1km away.

"Staff from the plant were called in and used heavy machinery to move the wood and create fire breaks,” he added.

There were no injuries and it is not clear yet how the fire started.

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) said: “At around 11.40pm on Friday 21 April, crews were called to reports of a fire at a commercial premises on Lower Green Lane, Astley.

“Six fire engines from across Greater Manchester, as well as the technical response unit and the high volume pump unit, quickly attended the incident. The fire involved a single-storey building and a large quantity of timber.

“Firefighters worked throughout the night, using hose reels and jets to extinguish the fire.

“Crews remain at the scene tackling the last pockets of fire and damping down hotspots.”