Fire and Rescue NSW says two shops have been destroyed by a blaze in the state’s north overnight.
Firefighters were called to Walker Street in Casino about 2:30am to find a “well-developed” fire in a laundromat and Chinese restaurant.
“We currently have crews external to the building trying to put the fire out, but we’ve had a lot of difficult getting in,” Acting Superintendent Richard Gibb said.
“We have a drone in the air and it’s confirmed that we have total roof collapse in those two affected shops.”
Seven fire trucks and about 20 firefighters worked to contain the flames overnight.
Acting Superintendent Gibb said there were no reports of injuries and the fire had been contained to the two shops.
He said crews brought the fire under control about 5:30am but were still trying to extinguish it.
“We’re going to be there for a protracted incident at this stage because we’re having difficulty getting into those areas due to the roof collapse,” he said.
“Firefighters have been able to knock down the fire, they’ve been able to take the heat out of it and confirm that it hasn’t spread to any other shops within the building itself.
“But obviously to make sure we’ve got full extinguishment, we’ve got to get in there and extinguish it.”
Police and ambulance crews are on site.
Acting Superintendent Gibb said firefighters would work with police throughout the day to determine the cause of the blaze.
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