FIREFIGHTERS rushed to Runcorn last night after a large fire broke out at the former Halton Magistrates’ Court.
Six fire engines from Runcorn, Widnes, Frodsham Stockton Heath and Penketh fire stations descended on the Second Avenue site shortly after 8pm.
Wearing breathing apparatus, crews entered the building with one hose reel to locate the fire, which had started on the first floor.
Once the fire was extinguished, crews ventilated the property and dampened down the area with a hose reel jet.
The temperature and hot spots were checked using a thermal imaging camera.
A spokesman for Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service confirmed that no one was inside the building at the time and there are no reported injuries.
Second Avenue was closed while firefighters tackled the blaze, with crews in attendance for around five hours.
An investigation into the cause of the fire has begun.
The Ministry of Justice shut Halton Magistrates’ Court in January 2017, with cases instead being heard at Warrington Magistrates’ Court.
The move came as part of a cost-cutting restructure, and at the time it was quoted that the decision would save more than £350,000 a year.
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