FIREFIGHTERS stopped a blaze spreading to a pick-up truck when three tonnes of metal went up in flames at a scrap yard.

The fire broke out on Merton Bank Road just before 7.55pm on Tuesday (April 29) with thick plumes of smoke seen from miles away.

Watch Manager Mike Foster who attended the call-out with firefighters from St Helens Community Fire Station said: “When we arrived the fire was about to spread to a pick-up truck and excavating machinery. We used ladders to access the yard where the fire was and prevented the fire spreading and causing serious damage to machinery in the yard and the pick-up truck.

“There was large quantities of thick, black smoke visible from a few miles away from this fire and flames were reaching around six feet above the pile of scrap metal when we arrived.

“The fire involved around three tonnes of scrap metal but this was part of a pile estimated to be around 40 tonnes. We stopped the fire spreading through the rest of the scrap metal pile.”

Firefighters had finished their work extinguishing the fire by around 8.30pm.

The cause of the fire was suspected to be accidental.