Fire-hit car firm up and running again

The Central Sports Cars base, in Wordsley, is set to be demolished following the devastating fire – but bosses say they are relieved they have been able to bounce back and carry on with their business.

Ten cars worth thousands of pounds, including Porsches and TVRs, were destroyed in the huge fire in September.

Only the charred shells of the cars remained with the rest of the workshop reduced to twisted metal.

Now the remains of the workshop on the Dadsford Bridge Industrial Estate in Plant Street will be knocked down following a demolition notice being served.

At the time of the blaze staff were able to save eight other vehicles which were parked outside.

However, bosses have revealed there is light at the end of the tunnel as the company has now moved to new premises in Ham Lane, Kingswinford.

Company owner Adrian Windridge, who was based at the Wordsley unit for 10 years, said he was sad to see the factory go but pleased that they were now successfully set up nearby.

"There was no doubt that it was a horrendous and very ferocious blaze but our customers' cars were covered by the insurance so they were paid out," he said.

"It would have taken us too long to rebuild the premises if we had stayed there, so we made the decision to move.

"We were lucky that we still had equipment and that our customers were paid off.

"We have had to start out again from scratch and we lost a month of business but nobody was hurt in the blaze so that was the most important thing.

"Our Ham Lane premises are a lot bigger and we are doing well so far," he added.

The firm employs seven staff - five full-time and two part-time. Mr Windridge's wife Vanessa is a receptionist at the firm.

Around 30 firefighters were involved in tackling the fire, with eight fire engines and a hydraulic platform needed to bring it under control.

At the fires height, plumes of thick smoke could be seen over the town's skyline.

Crews had to withdraw from the building for safety reasons after thefire spread to the roof.

Plant Street was closed off between Mill Street and High Street for hours after until fire fighters dampened down the site.

A statement on the company website praises the fire brigade and insists that a desire to support TVR owners still remains at the new premises.

It reads: "You may have seen pictures of the fire that tore through our workshop in September – we fought as hard as we could to save as much as we could with the help of some real heroes from the fire brigade.

"We could have given up, said 'that's it – we quit', but TVR people just aren't like that."

TVR's are lightweight sports cars with powerful engines.

They are one of the most specialised manufacturers in the world, offering a diverse range of coupés and convertibles.

Following the fire, crews were forced to withdraw from the building for safety and fight the blaze from outside, with firefighters working on different sections of the building.

Station Commander Wesley Williams said firefighters from Brierley Hill were the first at the scene. Crews had to get there in one of the fastest response times to ensure the fire did not spread to nearby workshops and factory units on the Dadsford Bridge estate.