Selbourne Road fire: major incident, homes evacuated

A fire in a bathroom showroom on Selbourne Road was declared a major incident on Saturday morning, 15 August, with ten fire engines, three aerial platforms and two water carriers sent to the scene, homes in Wingate Road evacuated, and residents across five wards told to keep their windows and doors shut against the smoke. Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service stood the major incident down at 11.50am, but its incident log said road closures would remain in place overnight and that there was still no access to the commercial buildings on Selbourne Road at 6pm.

The service was called at 6.23am to reports of a commercial building fire in Selbourne Road, LU4, which runs off Dunstable Road in Challney ward, west of the town centre. By its 9.15am update it had ten fire engines plus specialist vehicles and officers on scene, had declared a major incident, and was asking residents in Limbury, Saints, Dallow, Biscot and Farley Hill wards to close windows and doors because smoke was likely to reach them. Properties in Wingate Road were evacuated.

What the fire service found

Crews “were met with a fire in a bathroom store that was extremely well developed and was quickly spreading”, the service said in its 12.05pm update. The mixed materials inside the building, and the building itself, meant “thick black smoke quickly filled the air”, which is why the smoke warning went out to five wards rather than the immediate streets.

At its height the response was 10 fire engines, three aerial platforms to tackle the fire from above, two water carriers and an incident command unit. Neighbouring fire and rescue services sent resources too, during what the service described as a busy period for fire services nationally. All people were accounted for. The service said the fire had been surrounded and contained within the building it started in, and that it expected to be on scene for the rest of the day.

By the 6pm update the service was scaling back, though an emergency-service presence remained. Residents who had been evacuated were able to return home. Selbourne Road’s commercial buildings stayed off limits, and road closures were to stay in place overnight into Sunday. The service did not list which roads were closed in its written updates.

Water pressure

Fighting a fire of this size drew heavily on the local mains, and the service said in its evening update that water pressure would continue to be affected for as long as crews remained on scene. It directed residents to Affinity Water, the supplier for Luton, for the latest on the supply, including where to collect drinking water if needed. We could not read Affinity Water’s live alerts page today (it needs a browser to load), so check it directly rather than relying on this article for the current position.

The investigation

A full fire investigation, carried out with Bedfordshire Police, will look at how the fire started. The service has said nothing about the cause and neither do we; the incident page will be where any finding appears. We could not reach Bedfordshire Police’s news pages on Sunday morning, so if the force has issued its own statement it is not reflected here.

What it means for you

• Travelling on Sunday: allow for closures around Selbourne Road, and treat the fire service’s “overnight” as a minimum rather than a promise. Our roadworks and travel page carries the week’s planned closures, and the M1 J8 to J6 overnight closures towards London run to 21 August regardless of this incident.
• Smoke: if you are in Limbury, Saints, Dallow, Biscot or Farley Hill and can still smell smoke, keeping windows and doors closed remains the fire service’s advice while there is any smoke in the air.
• Water: if your pressure is low, the fire service says that is expected while crews remain on scene; use Affinity Water’s alerts page for the official line on your postcode and on where to collect drinking water.
• Businesses on Selbourne Road: access to commercial premises was still closed at 6pm on Saturday. Anyone trading on the road should check with the fire service or police cordon before returning; the incident page is being updated as the scene is handed back.
• Council services: Luton Borough Council’s news page carried no notice about the fire or any service changes when we checked on Sunday morning; if a collection on an affected street is missed, report it to the council rather than assuming it will be picked up automatically.

We will update this article if the fire service publishes a cause or a further update on the closures.