More than 10 tonnes of sawdust held in a vast silo went up in flames last night sending plumes of black smoke over Kirkby.

The blaze broke out just weeks after the factory fully reopened following a devastating fire in June.

The Health and Safety Executive, which has been called to 22 serious incidents over the past decade, was today poised to launch an investigation as campaigners insisted “enough is enough”.

Helen Moss, who coordinates the Say Bye To Sonae campaign and lives near the site, said: “This has got to be the final straw.

“How many accidents and incidents must there be before this factory is shut down? The buck has to stop somewhere.

“This factory supports jobs in the local area but why should they work in unsafe conditions?

“It has only been back open five weeks from the last fire.

“This has got to be the final straw. We all want to see action taken. This cannot go on.”

The Health and Safety Executive said it had been informed of the fire and was “making initial enquiries”.

But the severity of the fire and the factory’s alarming safety record means an investigation will now almost certainly follow.

The department is already investigating the deaths of two workers dragged into machinery in December 2010 and the death of a third worker in August last year who was crushed on a cherry picker.

A probe also continues into last June’s huge fire in which 1,500 tonnes of wood chips went up in flames.

The blaze took firefighters eight days to extinguish and led to Sonae spending £25m on repairs.

Last night the alarm was raised again and fire crews were called to the plant at around 6.30pm.

A Merseyside Fire and Rescue spokesman said eight fire engines were on the scene at the fire’s peak, with the blaze brought under control shortly after 1am.

Three explosion vents and electrical systems were damaged in the blast.

The spokesman said: “We believe the fire started in a silo and in the conveyor belt system. We have yet to determine the cause.”

Residents today demanded the factory’s closure.

Brian Kerrigan, who lives on Jarett Walk just around the corner from the plant, said: “My girlfriend’s son heard big bangs. He said he saw sparks coming out of the chimney.

“The last time this happened the place burned for days, the smell was disgusting.

“I think it’s a disgrace this has gone on for so long. I’d be glad to see the back of the place.”

The factory has been surrounded by controversy over the past few years with neighbours claiming foul-smelling odours from the site were a health hazard although no link has ever been proven.

Joe Morgan has lived opposite the factory in Northwood for 17 years.

He said: “There were two explosions – one large and one small. I was upstairs and the windows of my house rattled.

“It’s time to close it down, they should have done it when those two lads died.”

Nigel Graham, managing director of Sonae Industria (UK) Ltd, tried to deliver some reassurance.

He told the ECHO: “We can confirm that there was a fire in one of the silos this evening at around 6.30pm and there were no injuries.

“The safety systems activated and stopped the spread of fire with the internal sprinklers preventing any further damage to the equipment.

“We can reassure local residents that the fire has been extinguished and do not expect there to be issues with ongoing smoke.

“An investigation is already underway to determine the cause.”

A spokesman for Knowsley council today declined to comment.

The blaze at the Old Spiritual Church on Moor Lane began at about 23:00 GMT on Monday.

Seven fire engines and about 40 firefighters tackled the fire.

Several nearby homes have been evacuated and Moor Lane has been closed in both directions between Fylde Street and the A6.

Tony Crook, incident commander for Lancashire Fire Service, said: “The firefighters did an excellent job using the resources they had to stop the fire from spreading to any other building.

“The residents who were evacuated will be allowed to go back in to their homes once a structural engineer has declared the building safe.”

It happened just before 2.50pm at the property on Kilbuck Lane.

The canteen and its contents were damaged by fire. The warehouse and its contents, including supermarket fridges and shelving, were damaged by smoke.

Two fire appliances attended and were there for around two and a half hours.

Fire crews were called to Royal China restaurant in Queensway, Westminster, at about 10.45am on 16th January after smoke was seen billowing from the multi-storey building.

Firefighters spent around an hour battling the blaze, which caused damage to the restaurant’s external ducting. There were no reported injuries and the cause of the blaze is currently being investigated.

A fire risk assessment – which aims to identify and negate any fire hazards – must be conducted on all commercial properties in England and Wales, in accordance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

If a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment is not carried out, the Responsible Person faces up to two years in prison or an unlimited fine.

The incident came just weeks after the Royal China restaurant re-opened after an extensive renovation towards the end of last year.

Fire crews were called to the 22-floor building in Swiss Cottage at around 10pm on Monday (16th January) to tackle the blaze, which partially gutted the 17th floor.

It took firefighters more than three hours to tackle the blaze, in which no-one was injured.

Station manager Rod Horton said: “This was a big block of flats and at this time of night a lot of people were inside the building.

“Crews worked extremely hard to get the fire under control and to confine the fire to the seventeenth floor.”

A fire risk assessment – which aims to identify and negate any fire hazards – must be conducted on all commercial properties in England and Wales, in accordance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

If a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment is not carried out, the Responsible Person faces up to two years in prison or an unlimited fine.

Mr MacAskill is currently in the Borders to launch the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Bill, which will merge Scotland’s eight police forces and eight fire safety services into two single national bodies.

Under the plans, a local policing commander and senior fire officer would be assigned for each local authority area and have a statutory duty to provide adequate local services.

Mr MacAskill said: “Local authorities will approve plans for their area and, rather than a handful of councillors attending a regional board, many more councillors will have a say in what happens in their area.

“I expect to see the local commander and local senior officer coming before the council to explain and answer questions about police and fire services in the area.”

One of the key benefits of the move is the potential cost-savings offered by the move, with Mr MacAskill claiming it will deliver savings of £1.7 billion over 15 years.

The new organisations will be known as the Scottish Police Authority and Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

Fire safety crews were called to the facility in Mayobridge, County Down, at around 9.50pm on Sunday (15th January). Thousands of tyres were destroyed in the blaze, which is believed to have been caused by arsonists.

Group commander John Allen revealed that officers were also required to prevent pollution from finding its way into a river nearby the blaze.

“We are alongside a river and we are very conscious that fire water run-off has the potential to go into that river and result in a major fish kill,” he said.

“As a result we are modifying out tactics accordingly and we are working in conjunction with the Environment Agency.”

A suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment must be conducted on all commercial properties in Northern Ireland, under the Fire and Rescue Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006 and the Fire Safety Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2010.

If the fire risk assessment is judged to have not been carried out to a suitable and sufficient extent, the Appropriate Person can face up to two years in prison or an unlimited fine.

The Environment Agency have revealed that no water pollution has so far occurred as a result of the fire.

Delicious Foods Ltd of Liverpool Road, Eccles pleaded guilty to nine offences at Manchester City Magistrates Court on 6th January and was ordered to pay a total of £13,000 in costs and fines.

The takeaway did not have a working fire alarm, warning system or clear escape routes, while it also failed to carry out a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment.

Peter O’Reilly, director of prevention and protection at Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, revealed that they found the upper part of the premises was being used as a sleeping area and for general accommodation purposes after an inspection.

“We immediately issued a prohibition notice forbidding anyone using the basement, first and second floors, and an enforcement notice ordering an improvement in conditions,” he said.

“This complete disregard for the law, and the subsequent danger to life these premises posed, meant we had no option but to seek action through the courts.”

Around 20 firefighters were called to Malvern Court in Shepherds Bush at 2.30pm on January 6th, reports Fulham Chronicle.

Crews evacuated the care home before taking just under an hour to put out the blaze. One woman, who lived in a second-floor flat, was treated for smoke inhalation.

Tom Buckley, care home manager, told the news provider: “It is a relief that no-one was injured. We have regular fire drills so everyone knew what to do.

“There is a guest room so they can maybe move in there for the time being because the damage is quite extensive. They need to do a structural assessment to make sure it is safe before anyone can return.”

A ‘suitable and sufficient’ fire risk assessment must be conducted on all commercial properties in England and Wales, under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

If the fire risk assessment is deemed to be carried out to an insufficient extent, the Responsible Person can face an unlimited fine or a prison sentence of up to two years.

The cause of the blaze is currently under investigation.

Fire crews were called to Haringtons Hairdressers in Marlow on January 4th to tackle the blaze, which is believed to have started in a faulty electrical junction box by the entrance to the shop.

The entire ground floor suffered smoke damage, while parts of the second floor offices were also hit by the effects of the fire and smoke.

David Lambert, director of Haringtons, told the Bucks Free Press: “It is devastating news for our staff and clients but we are very grateful that no one was injured in the fire.”

Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, a ‘suitable and sufficient’ fire risk assessment must be conducted on all commercial properties in England and Wales.

If the fire risk assessment is deemed to be carried out to an insufficient extent, the Responsible Person can face an unlimited fine or a prison sentence of up to two years.