A fire in a commercial building at Brookvale has been handed over to police for investigation.
Just before 12.45am this morning (Wednesday, 30 September), Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW), NSW Police and NSW Ambulance responded to a report of a three-level commercial building on fire at Pittwater Road, Brookvale, near Winbourne Road.
Arriving at Pittwater Road, opposite Brookvale Oval, firefighters found flames coming from the upper level of the building which contains businesses including a drama workshop, games store, surf shop, butcher, hairdresser and drycleaner.
Firefighters from Manly and Dee Why Stations were on scene within ten minutes, confirming the flames coming from the top floor of the building and calling for additional crews, who arrived shortly afterwards from Narrabeen, Neutral Bay and Willoughby.
Accessing the top floor via a rear staircase, firefighters in breathing apparatus made entry to the drama studio with hose lines, finding a fire had taken hold in what appeared to be musical instrument storage.
FRNSW Manly Station’s Ladder Platform (LP) truck set up at the front of the building on Pittwater Road, conducting an aerial assessment of the fire and commencing firefighting operations from the front of the property. Firefighters inside the building conducted a check for occupants, finding nobody on the third floor.
Checks were also conducted on the other floors to ensure there was nobody on the levels, and that the fire had not spread through any wall cavities.
After an hour of firefighting effort, the blaze continued to grow in intensity and firefighters were forced to retreat outside the building, setting up their hose lines from the front and rear to put water on the fire through the windows.
As the fire progressed, additional FRNSW crews were called to assist from Mona Vale, The Rocks, Darlinghurst, Pyrmont, Glebe, Alexandria, Lane Cove, and Mosman. Exhausted firefighters were rotated out for fresh crews, who took over as they arrived. A total of 15 crews attended the scene with 55 firefighters, including an additional LP truck from Darlinghurst Station.
Gaining the upper hand on the fire shortly after 3.00am, firefighters conducted a safety assessment and re-entered the building. They searched for hot spots, pulling down ceiling panels and extinguishing fire as they moved through the upper floor.
Shortly after 4.00am, the fire had largely been brought under control and a number of crews were released as firefighting efforts were scaled back. Work continued through the morning however to extinguish stubborn pockets of fire.
Officers attached to Northern Beaches Police Area Command had closed Pittwater Road southbound throughout the unfolding response, but by 5.30am attention was turned to the approaching morning commute, and one lane southbound was reopened, increased to two lanes from 7.45am.
Atmospheric monitoring was conducted in an adjoining child-care centre to ensure the air was safe to breathe, and firefighters worked with police and the owner of the butcher shop to remove perishable stock shortly after 9.00am.
By 11.30am, the fire was confirmed to have been completely extinguished with all remaining hot spots found and put out.
Although fire damage was contained to the upper floor, which was totally destroyed, the second level which houses the games store is understood to have suffered extensive water damage.
A FRNSW spokesperson did not give any indication as to the cause of the fire, but it is understood the Fire Investigation and Research Unit was called in the early hours of the morning.
At the conclusion of firefighting activity just after 12.45pm, Pittwater Road had been fully reopened and a crime scene was established and handed over to NSW Police for further investigation.
Images: Northern Beaches Advocate, Luke Gavahan
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