A fierce fire has damaged the Bakehouse Company café on Broughton Street, and associated smoke damage has caused the temporary closure of Khushi's Punjabi restaurant nextdoor.
The blaze began at around 8.30pm last night, when the Bakehouse was shut. It was spotted and promptly reported by police who were already attending a traffic accident nearby. Khushi staff immediately evacuated their premises. There were no casualties.
Forty firemen in in six engines attended, whilst two ladder appliances checked rented flats above in case the fire had spread. Thick smoke filled the street in what one local witness likened to 'a scene from East Enders'.
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Several nearby businesses were forced to close early as pedestrians were held back at a safe distance behind a police cordon.
The cause of the fire is not yet known, although a local paper has speculated about an electrical fault. Most of the Bakehouse's furnishings appear to have been removed, and large areas of floor, roof extension and fascia panels were dismantled by firefighters to prevent any reignition.
Nextdoor, half-eaten, hastily abandoned meals lie abandoned on the tables. Shocked proprietor Mohammed Akram is doubtful about whether the restaurant will manage to reopen in time for the Festival.
This is the second blow for the family, who lost the restaurant's founding father Mohammad Khushi in April (Issue 194).
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