MORE than 20 firefighters battled fierce flames and smoke last night as they tried to contain a factory blaze in Suffolk.The fire broke out at Haverhill Mould and Tooling in Boundary Road, Haverhill, at 6.

By Danielle Nuttall

MORE than 20 firefighters battled fierce flames and smoke last night as they tried to contain a factory blaze in Suffolk.

The fire broke out at Haverhill Mould and Tooling in Boundary Road, Haverhill, at 6.25pm last night and caused serious damage to the inside of the premises.

Crews were expected to remain at the site throughout the night and this morning damping down.

Last night, assistant divisional fire officer Graham Crouch, of Bury St Edmunds Fire Station, praised the work of the firefighters, who were confronted with collapsing flooring and heavy plastic fumes.

"The large fire inside the premises was extremely difficult to distinguish due to the materials burning which was plastic and a certain amount of paraffin fuel," he said.

"Firefighting conditions were very difficult due to the large quantities of smoke inside the premises.

"Crews from Haverhill, Clare and Wickhambrook did a very good job and enabled us to distinguish the flames."

Mr Crouch said the fire, which was brought under control shortly after 8.30pm, was not being treated as suspicious and added investigations were still underway to establish the cause.

On arrival, he said crews found smoke issuing from the building.

"A large amount of expensive machinery inside was badly damaged but the structure – apart from a hole in the roof – has just a little heat and smoke damage," he said.