Flames Ravage Aerospace Plant in Northern Ireland

A massive fire that broke out Sunday evening at a Canadian-owned aerospace plant in Belfast, Northern Ireland, is now under control.

At 8:45 p.m. a first alarm was turned in for Bombardier Aerospace on Airport Road. Units with the Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service were on the scene within two minutes, an NIFRS spokesperson said.

On site at the height of the blaze were six pumping appliances, one aerial appliance, a high-volume pump and nearly 50 firefighters and officers.

“The fire appears to have started in machinery and the cause of the incident is under investigation,” NIFRS stated via Facebook. “At this stage the cause is believed to be accidental.”

The Quebec company’s Belfast facility manufactures aircraft parts and provides maintenance. Located on the Belfast quays in the east of the city, Bombardier is one of the largest employers in Northern Ireland with 3,000 people working at the Belfast plant alone.