Two Homeless People Die In Manchester Fire

Two homeless people who had been trying to keep warm in freezing conditions have died after a fire ripped through a building in Manchester’s Chinatown. It is thought that the two men were homeless and may have lit a fire to keep warm.

The huge fire began at about 2.15am and, at its peak, the blaze lit up the Chinatown arch and caused severe damage to the building. The fire was eventually contained at around 6am but Portland Street, Princess Street and Faulkner Street remained closed and anyone travelling to the area was urged to find alternative routes.

At just after 11.30am on Friday police announced that they had found two bodies inside the burnt-out building. The bodies were found on the first floor of the building in Nicholas Street, which is known locally as a place where homeless people have slept rough in the past.

Fire crews tackled the incident from a distance to avoid falling debris, with fears that the whole structure could collapse. However, the fire was contained to the one building and it is believed there is no fire damage to other buildings. Manchester borough manager Paul Etches said the building was unsafe and had been unoccupied for some time. He added that the key priority was to make sure there was no one else in the building.

It is thought the four-storey building had been empty for up to 35 years but had recently been bought by a local businessman with plans to renovate it. Bosses at neighbouring businesses said homeless people would regularly get into the property through damaged side windows.

Local restaurant owner Liam Lau, said: “Homeless people go in there and it looks like they have started the fire because it was cold. They have gone in, the fire has started and they couldn’t get out. They must have got in through the side windows as they are very weak and easy to access. It’s an absolute tragedy that two people should die in these circumstances when all they were apparently doing was keeping warm.”

Chief Inspector Gareth Parkin, of Greater Manchester Police, said: “These are tragic circumstances and we working to identify the people who were found in the building. A joint investigation with the fire service is in its early stages and we will be carrying out a number of enquiries to establish how this fire started. I would appeal to anyone with any information about this incident to please call us.”