A FIRE has ripped through an industrial estate, completely destroying warehouses and office buildings.

Firefighters were called to the blaze in Church Road, Leyton at about 10.50pm on Sunday April 5.

About 75 firefighters were on the scene at the height of the blaze and brought it under control at about 2.15am on Monday April 6.

They were still at the scene damping at about 1pm - more than 14 hours after the call was first made.

Watch manager (B) Charles Brown from the red watch at Leyton fire station was on duty when the blaze broke out and described the “manic” situation he was faced with.

He said: “Two warehouses and an office complex were alight. My main concerns were to ensure crew safety as it was a raging inferno and to protect the buildings that hadn’t been affected.

“There was a garage to the left, a warehouse behind and an office block in Church Road.”

Starting with just nine firefighters, crews from Leyton, Leytonstone, Stratford and Walthamstow also attended and were joined by crews from across the capital.

“There were 15 fire engines from all over London,” Mr Brown said.

“We were there from about 10.50pm and the initial crews got back to the station at about 4.30am.”

He added that it was immediately apparent that between 50 and 75 firefighters would be needed to tackle the blaze.

According to senior fire officer Mark McHenry, 25 people were also moved from nearby homes.

No injuries were reported and an investigation into the cause of the fire has been launched.