Flats damaged after Newburn Motor Museum fire but cars escape damage

Flats have been damaged after a fire at Newburn Motor Museum, but all the cars are thought to have escaped unscathed.

Emergency services were called out to a fire on Townfield Gardens in Newburn shortly after 10pm on Sunday night, which had broken out in the flats above Newburn Motor Museum. The museum, which has been closed to the public since the coronavirus pandemic, still houses a private collection of classic cars, including Fords, Jaguars and BMWs.

Firefighters battled the blaze throughout the night before it was extinguished just before 6am, with no-one thought to have been injured. However, a police cordon has remained in place throughout Monday morning.

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Marc Porrelli, who manages the collection at Newburn Motor Museum, was alerted to the fire by a neighbour just after 10pm on Sunday night. At the time of writing, he has not been allowed into the building as a structural engineer is yet to confirm that the building is safe to enter.

Marc told ChronicleLive: "We don't really know the extent, but a firefighter told me last night that the cars seem to be fine, so we're taking it as that. Until we get in [and can assess the damage], we don't know what we'll do next."

A Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said: "We can confirm that on Sunday (May 12), multiple crews attended a building fire in Newburn, Newcastle. The emergency call was received at 10.23pm, and six appliances from across Tyne and Wear, including an Aerial Ladder Platform, were in attendance at the incident.

"The buildings on Townfield Gardens were significantly damaged by the fire. No persons were reported injured. Our crews left the scene at 4.08am."

A Northumbria Police spokesperson said: "At 10.30pm yesterday (Sunday) we received a report from Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service of a fire at a building on Townfield Gardens, in the Newburn area of Newcastle.

"Emergency services attended and the fire was fully extinguished a number of hours later. No-one is believed to have been injured in the incident and a cordon remains in place.

"An investigation into the cause of the fire is under way and anyone with information should use the ‘Report’ page of our website or call 101, quoting reference number NP-20240512-1266."