Fearless firefighters have been praised for their quick response to a serious fire at a commercial garage today.

Just after 10:40am today (Thursday) Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service received a report that a car had ignited in a commercial car garage in South Shields.

Fire Control staff who took the call quickly dispatched a crew to attend the scene at Evans Yard in the Templetown area of the town.

That quick response saw the fir fire appliance arrive on the scene in just six minutes at which point the single-story building was well ablaze.

In total, seven appliances, including their Aerial Ladder Platform (ALP) vehicle, and over 25 firefighters were dispatched to bring the fire under control.

They have since brought the fire under control and will spend the next hours fully extinguishing the blaze.

Commanding officer at the scene, Station Manager Andy Blower, praised the firefighters for their response and said the incident is believed to be accidental.

He said: “This has been a fantastic response by both our Fire Control staff and the firefighters who have quickly jumped into action at the scene.

“This has been a serious fire that engulfed a large, commercial premises and the actions of our staff have prevented it from spreading to a number of nearby properties.

“The damage has been significant but workers at the garage acted bravely in the moments after the fire started to attempt to extinguish it.

“Unfortunately the fire spread far too quickly and there was nothing they could do. We will continue to support them as best we can.

“Following initial investigations, it is not believed this fire was started deliberately and nobody has reported to have been injured.

“We ask that members of the public continue to avoid the area if possible and if you live or work nearby you should keep your windows and doors closed due to the large amounts of smoke.

“We want to thank Northumbria Police for their support with surrounding road closures and we will remain on scene for much of the afternoon.”

Two appliances have since left the scene but a number of crews and vehicles remain in the area to extinguish the blaze and ensure it does not reignite.