Fire at Jubilee Gardens Beach Works Compound

On Sunday evening, 5 November 2023, huge flames engulfed the site of the Wyre Beach Management Scheme, with a raging fire at Jubilee Gardens beach works compound.

Fire at Jubilee Gardens Beach Works Compound

We were alerted just before 8pm. A friend forwarded a message received from her husband who was drinking at The Venue at the time. Shocked, we went out to investigate and see what was happening.

As we arrived at the scene at 8pm the fire was already well underway. From the promenade they were reaching probably 30′ into the air, sending up a huge column of thick black smoke. Then there was a loud bang. It turned out to be one of the tyres exploding on the dumper trucks.

Chatting to the security guard, the police had told him that a stray firework had landed in the compound. Falling on a tarpaulin it had ignited, causing the huge blaze. An investigation is currently underway. Here’s our live coverage from the site:

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Dumper Trucks and JCBs Alight

The three yellow 50t dumper trucks which move the rock, along with the big green JCB-style diggers were all parked towards the rear of the compound. The wooden hoarding around the site has burned away in this area. In darkness with the fire ongoing, the dumper trucks all appear to have been involved in the fire – and possibly some of the diggers.

Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus used two hose reel jets and a ground monitor to extinguish the fire. With nearby residents were asked to keep doors and windows closed, road closures were also put into place. The aerial drone team were also in attendance.

Kevin Warwick is Group Manager at Lancashire Fire and Rescue. In a Facebook video he explains. “At 7.30pm we were called to a large, well developed fire at Jubilee Drive, Cleveleys. Eight fire appliances were in attendance at it’s height, establishing a strong water supply. At 10pm we’d extinguished the fire and reduced to three appliances for dampening down, ongoing for probably most of the evening.”

A later update said that by 11.15pm one fire engine was in attendance with crews damping down.

Could have been a lot worse…

The cost of this fire will be huge – the equipment and machinery is all expensive, plus the downtime to the Beach Management Scheme. On top of that is the cost of the emergency response – eight fire engines and numerous police officers. However, it could have been a lot worse.

Fortunately the compound is a distance from neighbouring streets and bounded by a wide strip of grassland at Jubilee Gardens. And, as you’d expect on a Sunday night, there weren’t any people on site.

The Morning After the Fire at Jubilee Gardens Beach Works Compound

Visiting the site the following day the extent of the damage is clear to see with a wide section of fence burned away. Behind it was the geotextile membrane, used in groynes to prevent the rocks from sinking into the beach. This has clearly been alight, along with the tyres on the dumper trucks. One tyre is clearly blown – obviously the bang which was heard. See the results of the blaze in this video, made at 7.30am on Monday 6 November 2023 –

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Fire investigators will reveal the outcome of their enquiries in due course.

Assessment of Fire Damage

Thank the lucky stars, the damage caused by the fire is not as bad as it might have been. This is the site report:

• 1 Container used as spare plant parts and workshop is badly damaged due to heat, it was cooled down by the fire service
• 1 40t ADT Minor Damage and may be operational by Wednesday
• 2 40t ADT Fire damage is being assessed but hopefully it will be operational by end of this week/start of next week
• 1 50t excavator with minor heat damage and operational
• Several roles of Geotextile (Normally 6-8weeks call off, but more had been ordered and is now due tomorrow)

The Police are investigating. The Fire Incident Intelligence Officer has reviewed the scene – his comments are awaited. The most likely cause is a firework.

Effect on Wyre Beach Management Scheme

The site team have permission to commence the clean-up operations. With the team out on site and working the day afterwards, effect on the programme is minimal:

• SPI – Piling on the beach (putting the groyne marker poles in). No effect (and is taking place right now)
• Barratts – beach works building crossover ramps. No effect and pouring tidal concrete today
• Ovenden’s – moving rocks from the compound to beach and constructing groynes. Main works delayed by two days although some works are ongoing that do not need geotextile and similar.

Wyre Council has secured funding from the Environment Agency of over £40 million for this next major coastal defence project, the Wyre Beach Management Scheme. It aims to reduce the risk of coastal erosion and tidal flooding to over 11,000 properties and infrastructure within Wyre.