Fire chiefs were looking into the cause of a “small fire” at Wimbledon after crews from four different stations dealt with an incident at the famed London tennis venue on Friday.
A spokeswoman for the All England Lawn Tennis Club, which owns Wimbledon and runs the annual Grand Slam event there, said: “The AELTC can confirm the London Fire Brigade has been attending a small fire outside Gate 1, which has now been extinguished.”
The London Fire Brigade said the cause of the fire had still to be determined.
I think the All England Tennis Club is on fire. Dozens of sirens, massive plume of white smoke, ash falling like snow. #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/rCHIVrTyAX
— Calum Carpenter (@CalumCarpenter) May 26, 2017
Blaze @Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/dOfupbBcEa
— Marc (@MarcInners) May 26, 2017
An LFB statement added: “Four fire engines and 21 firefighters and officers have been called to reports of a fire in the practice court area of the All England Tennis and Croquet Club on Church Road in Wimbledon.
“The fire damaged around one tonne of mixed building materials, around 20 metres of hedgerow and a small section of a temporary marquee.”
The LFB said crews from four stations in southwest London had attended the scene, explaining: “The Brigade was called at 12:33pm (1133 GMT) and the fire was under control at 13:22pm (1232 GMT).
“Crews from Tooting, Wandsworth, Fulham and New Malden fire stations are at the scene.
“The cause of the fire is under investigation.”
Security at major British sports venues has been stepped up this week following Monday’s suicide terror attack at a pop concert in Manchester that killed 22 people, with both football’s FA Cup and rugby union’s Premiership final set to be staged in London on Saturday.
Wimbledon, the last of tennis’s four major Grand Slam events still played on grasscourts, runs this year from July 3-16.
