A major blaze destroyed the roof of the historic headquarters of the Co-operative Wholesale Society and brought part of Manchester city centre to a standstill last night.
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The seven-storey grade two-listed Hanover is a former commercial warehouse on the corner of Corporation Street near Victoria Station.
A spokesman for the group said: “The Hanover building is being refurbished as office space as part of the NOMA development”. The cause of the fire, the extent of the damage, and how long the project will be delayed are not yet known.
Over 50 fire fighters battled for four hours to get the high-rise blaze under control, which appears to have destroyed the pitched roof section of the building.
Balloon Street has reopened and tram services began operating as normal from about 05:00 BST after they were suspended, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue (GMFR) service said.
Later he told media at the scene that his crew had done a “fantastic job” in tackling the fire. No-one was injured and crews remain at the scene.
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“There will be a multi-agency meeting at 9.30am when we will be able to get inside the building”.
