Brunel University fire: 50 students fled halls of residence after ventilation system caught fire

Around 50 students fled their halls of residence at Brunel University in Uxbridge after a serious fire broke out.

Ten fire engines and around 70 firefighters were called to a building part of the Lancaster Complex , on Kingston Lane, at 4.07pm on Tuesday (October 9).

The London Fire Brigade (LFB) battled flames on the third floor of the building for three hours, and had the fire under control at 7.07pm.

An extraction system cupboard on the first, second and third floors of the building was damaged by fire, LFB confirmed after.

“Approximately 50 people left the building before the arrival of the brigade,” a spokesman for LFB added.

“There were no reports of any injuries.”

Fire crews from Hillingdon, Hayes, Southall, Northolt, Ruislip and other surrounding fire stations attended the scene.

Officers from the Metropolitan Police Service were also called, and the force has since confirmed the fire is “not reported to be suspicious”.

Emergency services remained at the campus after the fire was extinguished for some time. It is unclear at this time if the cordon erected earlier has been lifted.

Videos and images posted on social media showed just how serious the fire was, with one video showing thick, black smoke raging out of one window.

Smoke could be seen billowing through the air for at least an hour, and one student returning from a day out told getwestlondon she worried if the fire started in her room.

'I did worry if it was in my room. I hope everyone is alright'

Venetia Abrahamian, first year student reading psychology at the university, was in Uxbridge at the time the fire broke out but returned to find fire engines on the campus.

The 18-year-old said: “The first thing I thought of was I hope everyone is OK. I did worry if it was in my room. I hope everyone is alright.”

Situated at the heart of the campus, and completed in September 2006, the Lancaster Complex consists of 498 rooms, divided into 54 flats of up to 10 residents who have shared use of a large communal kitchen/diner.

It costs £149.14 per week to live there, or £5,668.46 for a 38 week contract.

A man who was at the campus moments after the fire started told getwestlondon at 5pm there was still a heavy emergency service in the area.

The man, who did not wish to be named, said: “I was just coming through campus and there is a fair amount of fire brigade activity still.

“There are a lot of students just hanging around the halls and there are a lot of security guys, police and a police helicopter overhead.

“The cordon was fairly wide so I couldn’t get that close but it [the fire] is coming from one of the back halls. Someone told me it started small but then spread.”

The man added that the “fire seems to be under control”.

Brunel has confirmed the fire was under control at 6.46pm, and that no one was injured in the blaze.

Alternative accommodation has been found for those living in the Borough Road Hall side of the Lancaster Complex, the university added in a tweet.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

To see how the incident unfolded visit out live blog here .