Birmingham City's training ground closed after being damaged in 'severe' fire

Birmingham City Football Club's training ground has been damaged in a "severe" fire, which emergency services say was caused due to an electrical fault.

A blaze broke out in the early hours of Friday morning (3 March) at the Watts Hill training ground.

Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service was called at around 2.29am.

The kits hanging in the training room were retrieved by firefighters so players will be ready for Saturday's trip to Wigan Athletic.

A spokesperson said: “Two crews from both Redditch and Bromsgrove Fire Stations attended along with the aerial ladder platform from Worcester and the incident command unit from Wyre Forest as well as West Midlands Fire Service crews from Kings Norton, Northfield and Highgate.

“There was a severe fire in the ground floor of a single storey unit with some areas covering two storeys.

“Crews used six breathing apparatus units and two hose reel jets while the hydraulic platform was used to survey the scene.

“By 6.06am, crews were damping down and checking for hotspots with a fire investigation underway.

“Firefighters remained at the scene at 8.34am with a watching brief in progress using a thermal image camera and triple extension ladder.”

The club says members and staff have been told and that facilities will remain closed.

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