ELECTRICAL faults were the cause of two of the biggest fires in West Yorkshire in recent months.

A fire at a Keighley take away was attended by eight fire engines 46 firefighters, and a blaze at a Girlington supermarket was attended by eight engines and 44 firefighters.

Details of the fires are included in a report by West Yorkshire Fire Authority into the period between October and December last year.

The quarterly reports detail all the fires that required six or more engines - there were four such fires in West Yorkshire during this period.

The fire that required the biggest response involved Miraj Pizza Bar on South Street, Keighley.

At 5am on Monday October 7, crews were called to the business after reports of a a fire in the basement.

At its height the inferno was tackled by crews from Keighley, Bingley, Silsden, Shipley, Illingworth, Leeds, Odsal and Fairweather Green.

Bradford warehouse blaze was biggest call out for fire service in past year

The busy A629 was at least partially closed for much of the day as emergency services dealt with the incident.

Referring to the incident, the report says: “The cause of this fire is thought to be from faulty wiring, cabling, or plugs in the basement kitchen of the takeaway, fire spread via voids in the false floor between the basement and ground floor and wall cavity and via the void in the false floor between the ground and first floor.”

The next biggest incident was a fire at Moston Supermarket on Girlington Road. That fire started just after 9pm on November 28 and saw crews from Shipley, Bingley, Cleckheaton, Stanningley, Dewsbury and Illingworth. A drone was also deployed to assess the severity of the fire.

The fire caused serious damage to the building, and crews remained at the scene until the following evening. Other local businesses were forced to close until the scene was secured.

The report says: “The cause of this fire is thought to be a faulty electrical appliance.”

One of the other major West Yorkshire fires is thought to have been caused by the attempted theft of a cash machine at the Co-Op in Honley.

Just after 2am on December 18 a car was used to pull the door off the front of a cash machine at the shop. The drawer covers were then cut off using an angle grinder, and the sparks from the grinder are thought to have started the blaze.

Over several hours, 42 firefighters dealt with the incident.

A fire at Hepworth House, Clay Pit Lane, Sheepscar on October 21 was attended by 34 firefighters. The cause is thought to be a contractor using gas powered blowlamp on the roof.