A tyre firm based in Keighley has bounced back following a devastating fire which destroyed much of the building, machinery and £30,000 worth of the business' stock.
Stockbridge Tyres, which is based in Aireworth Mills, Keighley, has continued to trade following the fire, which took place on 4 June this year, despite the fact that one of the buildings from which it was operating was so badly damaged it had to be destroyed.
Suffering losses of valuable machinery and stock as a result of fire can often be enough to put most firms out of business. That is unless you are covered by comprehensive business insurance, which will help to cover the replacement equipment and even help you to protect your premises and equipment against future natural disasters.
The firm is trading out of the adjoining unit, which had to be re-roofed following the fire. Managing director Bahar Ali has confirmed that the firm plans to replace the razed building and expand the services they are currently able to offer.
Mr Ali said: "The fire was absolutely devastating and at the time I just didn’t know what I was going to do. To see your business go up in flames is beyond words. It’s been a difficult few months but we have kept going, although it was hard initially.
“Business has been a bit slow because people have assumed we’re closed. But we’ve managed to keep things turning over. We’re still here and looking to the future.”
So serious was the fire that it required a team of 70 firefighters from across West Yorkshire to tackle the blaze. Eleven fire engines from stations including Keighley, Silsden, Bingley and Idle helped to put out the fire and the firefighters were praised for preventing the flames from spreading to other parts of the historic mill complex, which is also home to a number of other businesses. As yet, the cause of the blaze has not been established.
