Industrial park in Latvia evacuated after major fire breaks out at production plant

RIGA, March 14 (Xinhua) -- An industrial park in the central Latvian city of Jelgava was evacuated after a major fire broke out at one of the production plants on Thursday morning, the fire service said.

Firefighters were called to respond to a fire that had started in the plant of Baltic Innovation Holding which makes metal cutting equipment for rescue services and the military. The production plan is situated in the territory of NP Jelgava Business Park.

The blaze at the industrial building spread quickly as a strong wind fanned the flames. Some 30 firefighters with eight fire engines were involved in the firefighting operation. It took three hours to contain the fire, representatives of the State Fire and Rescue Service informed.

All people had been led out of the industrial park before the firemen arrived. Four of them needed paramedics' attention. One person was taken to hospital.

"This is a large complex of buildings with a complex layout with various kinds of insulation, so the fire burned inside the walls and other structures. Of course, it caused a lot of smoke and we received calls from worried residents, but there was no serious threat," said Viktorija Gribuste, a spokeswoman for the fire service.

A police investigation will be started to establish the causes of the fire.