AN investigation is underway into the cause of a fire which destroyed dozens of tyres.

Firefighters were called to Auto Tyres on Emlyn Street in Farnworth at 4am yesterday to tackle the fire which scorched between 50 and 100 tyres.

Owner of the business, Saeed Khan, said he was devastated but vowed to carry on trading.

He said: “I have just got new machinery in, and the damage will cost thousands of pounds.

“I’m not going to give up on the business, I have a strong family behind me and I have to get on with it.”

He added: “The fire has meant that that there is no electricity to the buildings attached because the meters were in this building.”

Crews from Farnworth and Bolton Central were called to the premises and brought the fire under control soon after arriving .

They remained on the scene into late morning dampening down and for fire investigation to begin.

Police were also called after fears the fire could have been started deliberately but firefighters say that an electrical fault is not being ruled out.

John Luby, an employee at Auto Tyres, said: “I got a phone call in the morning and couldn’t believe it.

“The business has been here a couple of years and we have really started to establish it.

“We had a thousand tyres in the building and we are trying to salvage what we can.

“The building is structurally okay but will have to be stripped and the 50 to 100 tyres alone will cost £1,500 and then we have to look at what other tyres have been damaged in the fire and how many we can keep.”

Crew Manager at Farnworth Fire Station Martin Finch said: “The tyres were well alight when we arrived.

“We tackled the fire within minutes.

"The cause of the fire is under investigation.”

He added: “CCTV footage from inside the garage and outside will be looked at to help determine the cause of the fire.”

Firefighters prevented the fire from spreading to other adjoining premises and the electricity board were called to make the building safe.

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said that the police had been alerted by firefighters and were liaising with the fire service.