Auction house owner left devastated after new fire at blaze-hit former church

Owner Brian Cairns was at home when he received a call from a resident living opposite Jarrow Auction Rooms, that smoke was coming out of the building at just after 3pm today.

It is understood the fire started within a metal bin that had earlier been used to burn wood, destroyed in the previous blaze at the property, in Bede Burn Road.

Only last week, Mr Cairns told the Gazette he was looking forward to getting the business up and running again.

He said: "We have started to clean the place up from the last fire, we were burning the wood as we go along using a metal bin.

"Before we left, we put the fire out and put plenty of water on it, but something must have still been burning underneath.

"You just wonder when you're going to get a break, I'm gutted."

Firefighters were on site using hose reels to extinguish the fire, before using a thermal imaging camera to check for other burning embers.

Jarrow Auction Rooms was left gutted after fire ripped through the former church in November last year.