Sydney fire twist as witness claims he saw three school children running from the building as biggest city inferno in living memory erupted
- Building in Surry Hills burst into flames
- Witness saw group of high schoolers running from site
A group of high school students were seen running from a building moments before it went up in flames, a witness has claimed.
A huge fire was seen burning through the seven-storey heritage-listed building on the corner of Elizabeth Street in Surry Hills, near Central Station on Thursday afternoon.
More than 100 firefighters worked to get the blaze under control at the 111-year-old former hat factory that had been left derelict and unoccupied.
Phu Tang, a locksmith, who works next to the building claimed he saw a group of students running from the site as it was engulfed in flames.
The building caught alight in Sydney’s CBD, sending thick plumes of smoke billowing into the sky
Mr Tang told reporters the group yelled out to their friend who was on the first floor to get out before they all fled.
The building burst into flames about 4pm and had almost entirely toppled over by 6pm, with chunks of debris from the roof and walls falling onto the street below, while thousands of horrified commuters and workers watched on.
The fire caused a ‘tornado of smoke’ and the heat could be felt even a block away.
Firefighters worked through the night to extinguish the blaze and are using a drone to monitor hot spots for potential reignition.
There are now concerns building walls could still collapse without warning.
‘There are two walls that are in a precarious position,’ Fire and Rescue NSW Superintendent Adam Dewberry told Nine’s Today program on Friday.
‘We are talking about tonnes and tonnes of bricks that could come down and become projectiles.
‘That is why we have such a tight exclusion zone, not allowing anyone in including firefighters until we get the engineers in.’
More to come
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