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Fire at construction site, Oxford Street, London
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Fire at construction site, Oxford Street, London
Fire at a construction site in Oxford Street, London, 14 February 1955. The building was under reconstruction following war damage. The open end was covered with tarpaulin sheets which were accidentally ignited with an oxyacetylene flame at second floor level. Shown here are two oxyacetylene cylinders brought down by firefighters from the second floor and placed in an emergency dam for cooling. The dam was quickly constructed with four scaling ladders and a salvage sheet. Date: 1955
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Media ID 14158047
© London Fire Brigade / Mary Evans Picture Library
1955 Apparatus Cool Cooling Cylinder Cylinders Damage Emergency Oxford Postwar Reconstruction Firefighter Firefighters Firefighting Fireman Firemen
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This evocative photograph captures the intensity of a fire that broke out at a construction site on Oxford Street in London on 14 February 1955. The building, which was undergoing post-war reconstruction following damage sustained during World War II, was engulfed in flames after an unfortunate accident involving oxyacetylene cylinders at the second floor level. The image shows two of the cylinders, which had been brought down by brave firefighters, being placed in an emergency dam constructed with four scaling ladders and a salvage sheet. The dam was designed to cool the cylinders and prevent further explosions. The London Fire Brigade, with its valiant firemen and firefighters, worked tirelessly to contain the blaze and prevent it from spreading to nearby buildings. This photograph, taken in the 1950s, offers a fascinating glimpse into the past and the heroic efforts of the fire service during a time of rebuilding and recovery in the aftermath of war.
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