FIVE crews from four fire stations were called out to tackle a blaze at a Mirfield textile company on Sunday night.

Automatic smoke alarms alerted the emergency services just after 6pm when a carding machine caught fire at the John Cotton Nunbrook Mills complex in Huddersfield Road.

Crews from Dewsbury, Mirfield, Brighouse and Cleckheaton arrived to find the machine on fire, along with nearby bales of a padding-type of material.

The 100 metre-long warehouse housing the machine was filled with smoke.

Fire officers wearing breathing apparatus spent four hours dealing with the fire. They also used thermal imaging cameras to locate the exact source and high pressure ventilation fans to clear the smoke.

John Cotton, set up in 1916, is Europe’s leading manufacturer of pillows, duvets and mattress protectors.