DRAMA unfolded last week when a serious fire ripped through a Fazeley business – just yards from a petrol station.

Witnesses described the scene as 'hell on earth' as flames consumed parts of Fazeley Car Centre and smoke billowed from the three-storey building last Friday evening.

"Now I know what hell is like," Roger Wood, an MOT tester at the town company, told the Herald. "I've never been so frightened in all my life.

"Luckily most of the lads had left for the day and there was only a couple of people on the premises.

"I heard all this commotion in the workshop. I went in there and saw the whole wall was ablaze.

"I realised as soon as I saw it, it was get out, not put out."

Crews from as far afield as Stone, Warwickshire and Burton joined orange and blue watch from Tamworth as they battled to bring the fire under control and prevent flames from spreading to the Fazeley Victory Club, next door, and the nearby Jet Petrol Station.

Town firefighter Jon Walker was part of the first crew to arrive on scene.

"Going across Tame Drive you could see smoke in the distance, so we assumed it was a developed fire or considerable fire," said Mr Walker, crew commander of orange watch.

"On arrival, Coleshill Road was engulfed with smoke – you couldn't see anything down there.

"There were visible flames coming from the lower windows and a considerable amount of smoke coming from the upper floors of the property.

"But we were quickly able to contain the blaze to the three-storey block, so that it didn't spread to the showroom, forecourt and Victory Club."

But inconsiderate motorists keen to get home, hampered fire crews' efforts, putting lives at risk.

"Prior to the necessary road closures being put in place we were concerned about the welfare of the firefighters due to the inconsiderate nature of some road users in the area," Mr Walker explained.

"When we arrived our priority was to bring the fire under control. However we had drivers who still insisted on using the junction that the garage was located on.

"Obviously this made the job increasingly difficult because we had to ensure the safety of the crews from the passing vehicles.

"This incident occurred at rush hour and we appreciate that people just want to get home. However we'd urge people to always exercise common sense when an emergency situation is developing."

Nearby properties and businesses were evacuated as crews tackled the fire, while police cordoned off the area and redirected rush-hour traffic, with parts of Coleshill Road, Lichfield Street, Tamworth Road and Atherstone Street closed for around four hours.

Jane Madeley, bar manager at the Fazeley Victory Club, had to watch from the roadside as flames threatened the building next door.

"We all came outside and could see flames coming out of the door of the Car Centre," she explained. "Then the glass blew out of the windows."

The blaze reduced the car centre building to a charred shell and damaged three vehicles in the workshop. The adjoining showroom and petrol station escaped damage.

Aside from needing cosmetic repairs, the Victory Club, was re-opened the following day. And it was business as usual for the Fazeley Car Centre on Monday.

MOT Tester Roger Wood added: "The fact that the showroom, the petrol station and the Victory Club didn't go up was because of the superb response from the fire brigade.

"We'd like to say a huge thanks to them and to all our friends and colleagues who've rang us or contacted us to offer assistance."

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.