A BLAZE at a Dorset food production factory caused an industrial estate to be shut down as firefighters battled at the scene.

A total of six crews have been tackling a fire that broke out in the boiler room of Dorset Chilled Foods factory at Shaftesbury's Longmead Industrial Estate.

Fire engines from Shaftesbury, Gillingham, Yeovil, Tisbury and Warminster plus an aerial appliance from Yeovil and a support unit from Sherborne were called to the scene at around 11.16am today.

Police have been in attendance to close the road into the industrial estate. It has since been reopened.

A spokesman for Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service said: "We received a call at 11:16am about a fire on Longmead Industrial Estate, Shaftesbury. Crews from Shaftesbury, Gillingham, Tisbury, Warminster, Sturminster Newton, a support unit from Sherborne and an ALP from Yeovil. 

"Firefighters found a well-developed fire in the boiler room of a commercial building - due to the high temperatures, crews are working with site personnel to cool it down and make it safe."

The building was evacuated and nobody has been injured, the fire service said, although it is not currently known how many people were on site at the time.

The fire service said heat and smoke have now reduced "significantly", and all crews had left the scene by 2.50pm.

A Dorset Police spokesman said: "We were called at 11.36am on Monday August 10 by the fire service to a report of a large fire at Dorset Chilled Foods on Longmead in Shaftesbury.

"Officers have attended the scene to assist with closing the road."