'Intense' fire at Cookham dry cleaners leaves business 'destroyed'

Firefighters spent more than six hours battling an ‘intense’ blaze beneath a dry cleaners in Cookham, which has been left ‘destroyed’.

Royal Dry Cleaners in Station Hill, next to Kitchen BBQ, has ‘closed until further notice’ following the fire which sparked in a basement below the building late on Sunday night.   

Residents were evacuated from their flats as fire engines from seven stations across Berkshire and Buckinghamshire were dispatched to fight the flames.

A statement from the Royal Dry Cleaners online said the fire had been an ‘awful disaster’, while a statement from Kitchen BBQ said it was also ‘temporarily closed’.

Maidenhead Fire Station manager Paul Strudwicke told the Advertiser that the fire was ‘intense’ with the ‘whole area engulfed by smoke’.

The scene pictured at night following the fire

Burnt and charred debris remained outside the dry cleaners, where a safety cordon was still in place yesterday (November 24).

Emergency calls about the fire at the parade of shops in Station Hill, next to Cookham Railway Station, shortly after 9.30pm on Sunday.

On arrival, firefighters found flames in the basement of the dry cleaners, which had spread to the ground and first floors.

Two firefighters from Maidenhead station, Annabelle Howie, 22 and Ty Marshall, 23, were the first to enter the burning building.

Thermal imaging cameras captured temperatures at 550 degrees as the pair, wearing breathing apparatuses, began to extinguish the fire with hose reels.

Station manager Mr Strudwicke, 46, said: “The whole area was engulfed in smoke and fire was coming out of some of the ventilation fans.”

He said once firefighters had extinguished the flames, debris in the building had to be ‘turned over’ to ensure the scene was safe.

Mr Strudwicke said: “If you think about all the clothes that were stacked up in there and everyone's items.

“You've put the majority of the fire out and then we would clear out most of the items and make sure there isn't any hidden fire.”

There were no injuries and an investigation is still ongoing to determine the cause.

An update on Royal Dry Cleaners’ Facebook page on Monday said: “We are sorry to announce that we have had an awful disaster at the Dry Cleaners last night where the shop has caught fire.

“It is with great sadness that we will have to remain closed until further notice.

“Please bear with us in this time of need. Thank you for all your warm wishes.”

A statement published on the Kitchen BBQ Facebook page said it too was closed following the fire.

It said: “Due to the fire at the neighbouring property in Cookham, we are temporarily closed while safety checks are carried out.

“Everyone is safe. We’ll update you as soon as we know more.”

A fundraiser has been set up for Royal Dry Cleaners with the description: “Please help to rebuild this wonderful family’s business.”

A statement added: “As you may know this business has been destroyed.

“Please give what you can to help rebuild and get them going again.”

At the time of publication, it had raised more than £2,500 from 69 donations.