'I witnessed the huge fire in Wolverhampton that erupted near a major gas hub - if a spark hit that we are all gone'

Delroy Constantine Simms, who has been living in Dubai but is originally from Heath Town in Wolverhampton, witnessed the huge blaze that erupted on Walsall Street in the early hours of this morning.

Mr Simms was staying at a family home located near where the fire erupted.

He told the Express & Star that he was lying in bed doing work when he began to hear “banging” at around 4:30am.

Mr Simms said: “I was with my cousin on Horsey Road. I was lying in bed doing my work when I heard all this banging and I thought ‘what’s happening?’.

“The banging got louder and louder and I thought ‘this is serious’.”

He told the Express & Star that he was seriously concerned as the major blaze erupted in a factory unit that was near the BOC Gas & Gear firm, located on Lower Walsall Street.

The firm is a major industrial and medical gas hub and has been a critical site for over 100 years, providing gases and specialised equipment to local manufacturers and the wider UK market.

Mr Simms said: “My biggest concern was that BOC, which is up the road, is where they make the gas. So I was thinking if a spark hits that we are all gone.

“I was happy how the police dealt with things but I was concerned that they didn’t tell us to go further back - there were kids involved and a few elderly people who were incapacitated so we had to drag them to make sure they were safe.

“I was frightened, because being in the Middle East, I’ve heard those sparks before and it triggers your instincts.”

Mr Simms said that the size of the fire was alarming as well as the amount of smoke that was billowing into the sky.

He added: “It’s the biggest fire I’ve seen. I’ve seen house fires, but that was big,

“The fire was large and the plume of smoke even larger. Because the plume of smoke was large we don’t know what kind of chemicals are coming out. What are we breathing in? That was another concern.”

Residents in houses close to the fire were evacuated. Mr Simms said he and his family were evacuated and the staff at the nearby Novotel Hotel allowed them use their facilities until they were given the all clear to return.

It is understood that residents are now allowed back to their homes.

In its latest update West Midlands Fire Service said it was making progress on dampening the fire and is beginning to scale down its operations.

It said in a statement: “We have further scaled down our resources at this incident, with three fire engines and a hydraulic aerial remaining at the scene. This will be reduced further as we make continued progress.

“Gas to the building has been isolated.

“Road closures that remain in place are affecting York Street, Wharf Street and the commercial road on Walsall Street, which will be managed by highways.”

There is still a cordon in place and motorists are advised to avoid the area.