Listed Northampton building unsafe after fire

Fire crews were still attending the fire a day after it began on Bridge Street in Northampton

A listed building in Northampton that was badly damaged by fire earlier this week is at risk of collapsing, according to structural engineers.

The former Angel Hotel on Bridge Street was left structurally unsafe after the fire on Monday.

Fat Cat Bar and the Balloon Bar, which are housed in the Grade II listed building, are closed.

The cause of the fire is under investigation and the area has been cordoned off.

At its height it took more than 50 firefighters to tackle the blaze.

The ceiling of the Fat Cat Bar collapsed in the fire.

'Town remains open'

Building Control officers from Northampton Borough Council will be serving a notice on the owners of the building to require them to make it safe as soon as possible.

And scaffolding will be put up around the building to ensure that parts of the facade on Bridge Street and the gable end are retained and made safe.

Councillor David Mackintosh, leader of Northampton Borough Council, said: "This has been a major incident for our town centre and we are all working together to deal with what has happened, make the area safe and get things moving again as soon as we can.

"When that has been done, we will then be speaking to businesses to discuss how we can make sure that the town remains open for business and that this fire has as little impact as possible on the local economy."

Representatives from the council and the Fire and Rescue Service will now meet to decide how to restore traffic around the town.