Newport firefighters called to ex-Royal Mail sorting office

Crews from Malpas and Duffryn fire stations attended the incident on Factory Road, Newport, on the afternoon of Wednesday, August 30.

Cardiff-based developer Garrison Barclays Estates received planning permission from Newport council in 2018, with a view to transforming the former Royal Mail site into 50,000 sq. ft of office space.

Jennifer Centracchio, who lives on Locke Street, says she and her husband were alerted to the fire when black smoke started to billow over her garden fence.

“My husband came in and said there’s a fire behind our house. There was all this black smoke.

“The fire brigade arrived in five minutes, and police.”

Site of the old Royal Mail sorting office in Newport (Image: Jennifer Centracchio)

Mrs Centracacchio, 68, says the site has suffered from fly-tipping, with a mattress and cooker both visible among the rubbish pile.

She also says people have climbed onto the building roof and “chucked stuff” into her garden.

“I think it’s going to happen again and maybe next time the fire brigade won’t get there. What if it happened in the night?” Mrs Centracacchio said.

Some of the waste left outside the building (Image: Jennifer Centracchio) (Image: Jennifer Centracchio)

Gwent Police officers attended the scene to assist the fire crews with traffic management.

A stop message was received at around 2:50pm, just twenty minutes after the initial reports came in.

A spokesperson for South Wales Fire and Rescue said: “At approximately 2:30pm on Wednesday 30 August 2023, we received reports of a refuse fire on Factory Road in Newport.

“Crews from Malpas and Duffryn Fire Stations attended the scene alongside emergency service colleagues.

“A stop message was received at approximately 2:50pm.”