FIRE investigators were today due to start examining damage at a prominent Suffolk garage whose showroom was badly damaged in a blaze.

FIRE investigators were today due to start examining damage at a prominent Suffolk garage whose showroom was badly damaged in a blaze.

Meanwhile more than 30 firefighters were called to a blaze in a block of flats off Foxhall Road after wires leading to a satellite dish caught fire.

Suffolk Firefighters were called to the Mendlesham Group Fuels (MGF) garage at Brockford, near Eye, shortly before 7pm last night - and believe the fire could be suspicious.

Crews from Eye and Debenham were immediately mobilised and upon arrival found the fire had started in the garage's loft space but had not spread to the filling station.

Firefighters from Stowmarket and Needham Market followed shortly afterwards and a turntable ladder was requested from Bury St Edmunds, as well as a water carrier from Framlingham and further support vehicles from Elmswell, Diss and Colchester Road in Ipswich,

Crews used the turntable ladder to reach the flames and used eight breathing apparatus to quell the fire, in which no one was hurt.

Police closed a stretch of the A140 between the A143 junction and the Brockford Road junction and diverted traffic while firefighters got the flames under control.

Brockford resident Paul Oats, who lives a short distance from the garage, was alerted to the blaze when he heard sirens. He said: “I work at West Suffolk Hospital so when I heard the sirens I came out to see if it was something I might be able to help with. Then I saw the smoke coming from the garage.

“It was a very good response from the fire brigade. I think they were quite cautious because obviously they didn't know if anyone was still inside.

“You can really see the benefit of the turntable ladder because they are able to target the flames.”

Two top-floor flats in Provan Court in Ipswich , on the former Bull Motors site, were badly damaged by the blaze in the roof of the block, but both were unoccupied when the drama unfolded.

The fire service turntable ladder was called to get access to the blaze, and firefighters spent more than an hour ensuring it had not spread further.

Group Manager Martyn Thorpe said; “Fortunately the blaze was spotted fairly early and this is a modern property with safety features built in so it was not too difficult to fight.

“But the two flats that were affected had no one at home so we had to break into them. The police are now in the process of contacting the residents of those flats.”

Residents of other flats in the block were moved out while firefighters tackled the blaze, but were allowed home within about two hours.