Thanks for reading our updates about the fire in Reading today, which is now under control according to the fire service.

Please visit the BBC Berkshire page for any more developments.

Videos from social media show the worker being lifted by a crane from the roof of a building.

The Station Hill development was due to open in 2024. Sited next to the railway station, the development will include 15 floors of workspace and a fitness club.

Once complete, 275,000 sq ft of space will be made available.

The wider regeneration scheme will also provide 1,300 homes to rent, 95,000 sq ft of retail and leisure space and 625,000 sq ft of office space, according to developer Lincoln MGT.

The US company bought the site in 2018 for an estimated £70m, becoming its third owner in 13 years.

Read this story from September for more about the Station Hill development.

Image source, GENSLER / CALLISONRTKL

A crane operator, who rescued a man from a burning high-rise in Reading has said it was a "close call".

Glen Edwards, 65, from Egham, Surrey, said: "I was no more than 20 metres up in the air and I looked out my left-hand window and saw a guy standing on the corner of the building.

"I'd only just seen him and someone said 'can you get the cage on', so that was it, I got the cage on and got it over to him the best I could. It was quite windy conditions."

He added: "I would say it was a very close call, if you look at the video at the way the wind was swirling around there.

"I tried to put the cage down between him and the flames, but I was hampered by the wind swirling around there.

"But I got the cage down and I managed to get him in there."

A witness has described how the crane operator saved the worker from the top of the high-rise building earlier.

The carpenter, who was working nearby, said onlookers below applauded as the man clambered into a metal basket attached to the crane and was carried away from the flames.

The witness, who did not want to be named, said: "I was in the next door building, there was a guy standing up there (on top of the building), luckily the crane came in just in time.

"He was coughing [when he came down], from the smoke.

"When he got inside the crane and the crane put him down everyone was clapping."

Berkshire Live has spoken to the "heroic" crane driver who saved a worker, external from the fire.

Dramatic video showed the man being lifted to safety from a building next to the huge blaze.

Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue service has just issued this update.

"The fire has now been extinguished and we have scaled back our resources at the incident, but a number of crews will remain at the scene at this time to dampen down.

"Thank you to everyone for their ongoing cooperation during this time."

Reading Buses is sharing updates on disruption to services across the town, external.

Passengers have been urged to check the company's website for the latest.

In July, a major incident was declared when a fire broke out at another high-rise building under construction in Reading.

Firefighters responded to the blaze in Garrard Street.

It affected the 12th and 13th floors of the building.

Nearby shops and businesses in the town centre were evacuated, but Thames Valley Police said there were no injuries.

Peter, who runs a local café, said the fire was "really quite dramatic - thick billowing smoke and lots of flames".

"We immediately got rid of all our customers - that's all we could think to do," he said.

Aaron, who was a bystander, said: "It's just the most devastating thing I've seen in my life."

Steve Reynolds works in a building 100 yards away from where the fire started.

He said: "I saw a black cloud go up and a ball of flames happen and all of a sudden I could see there was a guy trapped on the corner.

"There were bits of glass falling off the side of the building and he was completely exposed up there.

"Then all of a sudden a crane came out from the left with a carriage on it and they lowered it down… and he gets in and they pull him away.

"There was a massive cheer from all the workers on the ground. It was pretty terrifying."

Great Western Railway says the incident should not be affecting rail passengers.

There was some concern on social media earlier but the train operator has allayed fears...

Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service says more than 50 firefighters are at the scene.

Crews in breathing gear fought the flames at the high-rise building, external at the Station Hill site in Reading.

People are still being urged to avoid the area.

J Whitaker posted this image on X of the scene earlier.

Image source, j whitaker

People have been posting pictures on social media of the plumes of smoke over Reading.

The fire in Reading occurred at the Station Hill development site.

Redwood Consulting, on behalf of Station Hill, said: "We activated our fire emergency plans immediately, the emergency services were notified and are currently on site.

"The safety of those on site and the wider public is always our first priority, and the site has been evacuated as a result.

"As soon as we have more information we will provide an update."

South Central Ambulance Service has confirmed two people had been taken to hospital for treatment for smoke inhalation.

A spokesperson said neither were deemed to be "severe cases".

They added: "We are now on stand-by supporting the fire service (which is a standard operational procedure when they are working at height and at scale).

"We have our hazardous area response team, an ambulance, the Thames Valley Air Ambulance critical care car, an operational commander, a tactical adviser and a tactical commander at the scene."