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Housing association block evacuated in fire

A housing association block in Ipswich was evacuated after a fire broke out on Monday afternoon.

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A still from a video of the fire taken by a nearby resident
A still from a video of the fire taken by a nearby resident
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A housing association block in Ipswich was evacuated after a fire broke out on Monday afternoon #UKhousing

The blaze started in a top-floor flat at a four-storey building in Yeoman Close owned by Flagship Group.

Footage from the scene showed flames and smoke roaring from the top of the block.

A total of 28 fire engines were sent to the incident as well as ambulance crews but there were no reports of anyone needing treatment.

All residents have now been offered temporary accommodation.

Crews from Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service remained on site until the early hours of Tuesday morning assessing the building.

Initial conclusions are that cladding or external wall materials did not play any significant role in the fire.

There are timber balconies at the block but they were not involved.


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Flagship, which owns more than 31,000 homes across the East of England, this month underwent a group reorganisation with three housing associations – Newtide Homes, Samphire Homes and Victory Homes – now each managing around a third of its stock.

The move follows mergers with Victory Housing in 2017 and Suffolk Housing Society in 2020.

Newtide Homes, a legacy of Flagship Homes, owns the block involved in Monday’s fire, while the original developer was Persimmon.

Sam Greenacre, managing director of Newtide Homes, said: “We’re glad that our tenants are safe, and we have arranged temporary accommodation for those who need it.

“We have visited Yeoman Close to carry out an inspection, however, as we haven’t been able to gain access to all properties yet, it is too early to tell what repairs are needed.

“We will do what we can to get our tenants back safely in their homes as soon as possible.”

A spokesperson for the East of England Ambulance Service said: “We were called at 2.06pm on Monday 12 July with reports of a fire in Yeoman Close, Ipswich.

“We sent an ambulance, three ambulance officers and East Anglian Air Ambulance. No one required transport to hospital.”

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