160 animals were rescued from a burning garden centre

30 Jan 2012 From @fireindustry

Around 160 animals were rescued from a burning garden centre in Oldham last week. Fire crews were called to Booth's Garden Centre in Royton on Friday afternoon (27th January) after a blaze broke out in the single-storey building.It was initially feared that all but three parrots perished in the fire but firefighters discovered that the majority of animals on sale at the centre had survived.

Oldham RSPCA branch manager Mandy Tierney was alerted to the incident by text message and took part in the rescue operation."I was told that only three parrots had survived but when we went into the shed it was clear there were about 100 birds plus plenty of chickens, rabbits and guinea pigs," she told the news provider.

I was so relieved - it was awful to think so many animals may have died so it was fantastic that it wasn’t as bad as we thought.

"Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, a fire risk assessment must be conducted on all commercial properties in England and Wales.In Scotland the Legislation is The Fire (Scotlamd) Act 2005 Part 3. If a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment is not carried out, the Responsible Person/ Duty Holder faces up to two years in prison or an unlimited fine.The cause of the blaze is currently under investigation.