A FACTORY fire which left smoke billowing across the region’s busiest road began in an industrial oven.

The blaze at the Rettig Heating factory on the Team Valley Trading Estate in Gateshead broke out at around 6.20am today.

It is believed to have started in a large curing oven used to bake enamel onto radiators and caused extensive damage to the oven, before spreading to part of the factory roof.

At its height, six fire engines and an aerial ladder platform were used to tackle the fire at the premises in Eastern Avenue and smoke spread across the nearby A1, causing problems for drivers on the busy route with police warning motorists to slow down in the area.

Fire crews wearing breathing apparatus used a water jet to extinguish the fire, which took two hours to bring under control.

A spokesman for Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service said nobody was hurt during the incident.