A MAJOR fire has destroyed an Edwardian building in a North-East town centre after breaking out in a Chinese takeaway.

Children from a neighbouring primary school were evacuated after emergency services were called to the bottom of Front Street in County Durham.

Firefighters battled to control the fire at Wong's Chop Suey House in the Elite Buildings, but flames spread quickly throughout the former dance hall and took hold in the timbers of the roof.

Former businesses, including a fitness centre and off licence, were destroyed as part of the building, which is over 100 years old, collapsed.

Flames leapt hundreds of feet into the air and thick, black smoke, which could be seen from miles away, caused the road to be closed to motorists.

The alarm was raised at 1pm after a man who works in the takeaway was seen running in and out of the shop.

He asked a woman, who works at the computer shop, Gametime, opposite to call the fire brigade.

The woman, who does not wish to be named, said: “There was just a bit of smoke to start but within a couple of minutes, it went ‘whoosh’ and there was loads of smoke.”

The scale of the blaze attracted crowds of onlookers, but caused traffic chaos around the town centre.

Phillip Perkins, 21, from Shield Row, said: “I have never seen anything like this in my life. You see things like this in films, but not in real life.”

At the height of the incident there were seven fire engines as well as an incident command support unit and an aerial ladder platform with 30 firefighters and five officers.

A spokesman for County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service said: “Once the fire is fully extinguished we expect fire crews to remain on the scene for several hours to dampen down.

“Parts of the building are in an unstable condition and are being assessed by a structural engineer.

“A joint fire service and police investigation will be carried out to try and determine the cause of the fire as soon as it is safe to do so.”

No-one was injured, and Sergeant Dave Clarke, who said the priority for police was keeping people safe, praised staff from St Joseph’s Primary School, who evacuated children to the nearby church hall, before they arrived.

The school has confirmed it will be closed tomorrow. (Tuesday, November 12)

Five years ago, further up Front Street, the Victorian former Co-op building, was destroyed by a major blaze.

Local historian Bob Drake, who witnessed today’s blaze, said: “This is another part of the town’s heritage that has gone up in smoke and it is devastating.”