Sixty firefighters battled to bring a blaze at a malt factory under control last night.

Twelve fire engines were called to the blaze at Paul's Malt in St John's Road, Wallingford. Fire broke out in a dust conveyor and smoke spread through ducts to a large part of the building.

Divisional fire officer Alan Hoar said the initial blaze was under control quickly but thermal imaging cameras were then used to check the rest of the building for further outbreaks. He said: "The malting process involves lots of ducting. The fire had spread through the ducts and smoke-logged the whole building."

Plant engineers and fire crews dismantled part of the ducting and ventilated the building with large fans.

Maltings manager Tim Hyland said production had resumed at the plant within hours of the blaze and it was business as usual today.

He said very little damage had been caused by the fire and no-one had been hurt.

He added: "Our safety systems went beautifully. The fire brigade came out in force. It all went like clockwork."

Story date: Friday 21 May

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