Roads closed as fire raged in town centre

Councillor Leigh Whitehouse took this picture of flames leaping from the building

A large fire at a derelict building in Kidderminster town centre has been tackled by more than 30 firefighters, with residents told to keep their windows shut.

Flames and smoke were billowing from the old factory building in Park Lane near Matalan, where the slip road has been closed.

The fire service described the blaze as "significant" and asked motorists and the public to avoid the area around Park Road due to congestion.

At 19:00 BST on Saturday, firefighters said the incident had been scaled down to two appliances which were damping down hotspots.

The canal had been been reopened, they added, but Park Lane remains closed.

Earlier in the day they said six appliances had been in attendance, with crews from Wyre Forest, Bromsgrove, Droitwich, Stourbridge and Haden Cross stations brought in to assist.

Flames have engulfed the three-storey empty building, which lies adjacent to shops

Social media users shared pictures of flames spreading to the roof of the building

Photos shared by the fire service showed flames engulfing multiple storeys of the vacant building, with boarded windows burned through and fire seen spreading to the roof.

West Mercia Police warned smoke may make driving around the area difficult.

A fire service spokesperson said an aerial ladder platform had been deployed at the scene to deal with the "significant fire".

"HWFRS assets have the incident surrounded, however, we would like to advise local residents to keep windows and doors shut whilst there is a smoke plume," they added.

"Our assets have also blocked Park Lane and we would advise motorists members of the public to avoid the area due to traffic congestion."

Social media users shared pictures of the "massive fire", which could be seen from the carpark of Weavers Wharf Shopping Centre.

Firefighters have closed Park Lane to deal with the fire

The fire service deployed an aerial platform to douse the flames