It may not be “business as usual” in Sudbury for some time yet, but the town is starting to show signs of recovery in the wake of Sunday’s fire.
Shops that have remained closed since the blaze in Friars Street/Market Hill are starting to open, with a crane due to be on site today to help stabilise the severely damaged buildings.
The path along Friars Street opened up yesterday evening, allowing access to Pizza Express and flats. A sign posted on the cordon loudly states “businesses open as usual”, but two premises behind are no longer standing.
The investigation into the cause of the fire, which started at 6pm on Sunday, is yet to start, with Babergh District Council’s building control hoping to have the buildings secure by Monday.
The front of the partially destroyed HSBC building is now being supported by scaffolding.
Gary Starling, building control corporate manager, said: “The fire is extinguished, but we have a crew on scene in the event of flare ups from any hotspots. The road will not be open for a while yet, several days at least.”
The three-storey Goldsmith’s Mansion, home to several flats, Celebrities Nails and the Oxfam shop was brought down by the blaze.
The fire spread to neighbouring Grade II listed buildings, with the HSBC bank severely damaged along with the former Anchor pub, home to a cobblers and the Javelin clothing store.
The fire is not thought to have been set deliberately, but spread rapidly after smoke was spotted in the nail salon.
Three businesses on Gainsborough Street, which backed on to the fire, are now able to open.
Denise Wiffen, of The Bread Shop, opened up yesterday. She said they had learnt lessons from the incident.
“The fire service came round and spotted three things we were not doing,” she said. “I would hate to think that something we hadn’t done could put the people living above us at risk.”
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