A BLAZE ripped through a plastics factory last night.
The fire, at the factory on New Mill Road, Honley, started at around 6pm.
The fire was at its largest by 6.30pm and at 7.10pm containers filled with polymers exploded.
Nobody is thought to have been injured in the blaze at the factory, which is situated between a car dealers and a furniture shop.
Fire crews from Holmfirth, Meltham, Huddersfield, Marsden and Brighouse tackled the blaze which raged until around 7.30pm.
Aerial jets and foam fire extinguishers were used to tackle the flames which caused considerable damage to the building.
Plumes of thick black smoke, which could be seen from Huddersfield town centre, billowed into the sky.
Police blocked off New Mill Road while firefighters tackled the blaze.
Cars at an adjacent dealership were taken away undamaged.
The cause of the fire was under investigation last night, but it was thought to have been sparked by a faulty compressor machine.
Incident commander Steve Fealy said: “We were called to the fire at around 6.30pm. Appliances arrived from Holmfirth and Huddersfield, and we’ve got appliances from Marsden, Meltham and Brighouse.
“We’ve been using two large jets round the front and back of the building and foam in the back of the building.
“No chemicals were involved but plastics were giving off toxic smoke.
“We managed to save 40 cars.”
