Door left open at blaze centre
18/08/2008
A fire which damaged a historic arts centre was made worse because a door was left open, a report says.
The blaze damaged two floors of The Bluecoat in Liverpool, an 18th Century building which had only just reopened after a £12.5m refurbishment.
Smoke poured out of a kitchen door which had been wedged open overnight and damaged parts of the galleries.
A fire report revealed the mistake led to a "challenging and rapidly worsening situation" for firefighters.
Fire broke out at the Grade I-listed building on School Lane, believed to be the oldest arts centre in the UK, in the early hours of 13 May.
The Merseyside Fire Authority Report said the total loss of the building was avoided by fire service involvement at the design stage of the refurbishment.
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