Emergency fire crews had to cut through the security door of a taxi repair garage under railway arches in Bethnal Green to remove propane gas cylinders in danger of exploding when a blaze broke out during the night.
Three taxis and part of the workshop were damaged, but there were no reports of injury.
The firefighters managed to prevent the flames spreading to other garage workshops along Cudworth Street, housed under the Liverpool Street main line.
“We had to work quickly,” Brigade watch manager Paul Rozan explained. “We used specialist cutting equipment to cut away the door and get to the fire to prevent it spreading to neighbouring businesses.”
Crews from Bethnal Green, Whitechapel, Shadwell, and Shoreditch fire stations removed three propane cylinders which had been exposed to heat and put them at a safe distance in time.
The fire discovered soon after midnight by a passer-by took nearly two hours to bring under control. The cause is being investigated.
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