-
Source: Reuters
Smoke billowed hundreds of feet above an historic part of central London on Thursday (NZT) after a blaze broke out in offices.
About 40 firefighters attended the blaze at Breams Buildings in Chancery Lane.
"There's dense black smoke hundreds of feet high, and we can see flames," said Dick Durham, news editor at Yachting Monthly magazine, whose offices are about 250 metres away.
"We didn't hear anything. There was no explosion, but the fire has been going for about 30 minutes."
A large part of the fifth floor and the roof was ablaze at the building which houses the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC), but the cause was not known, London Fire Brigade said.
SIAC oversees cases involving terrorism suspects awaiting deportation.
There were no reports of anybody being trapped or injured, London Ambulance service said. Police evacuated all the offices and shops within the cordon.
The area is at the heart of London's legal district and is home to many barristers' chambers. It is a short walk from the Royal Courts of Justice, which houses the high court and appeal court.
