In the early hours of this morning (29 May 2020) eight fire engines and around 60 firefighters were called to a fire at the Gunnersbury Park Café on Popes Lane in Ealing.
Part of the ground floor and the roof of the café were alight and the fire was brought under control at about 4 30am There are no reports of any injuries. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
The café has a historic display area, containing display items like horse-drawn carriages, and firefighters safely removed these from the building.
Cllr Julian Bell, leader of Ealing Council said: “The fire engulfed the café overnight and it has been completely destroyed – this is very sad news and will be a significant blow to everyone who uses the park and for colleagues at both councils and the Gunnersbury CIC who have worked so hard to regenerate the park and the house.
“I would like to thank London Fire Brigade for their hard work overnight to tackle the blaze and for retrieving two historic carriages.
“We will work closely with the emergency services, Hounslow Council and the Gunnersbury Park CIC to investigate the cause of the fire. We will be doing everything possible to get the park open as quickly as possible.
“We are thankful nobody was hurt.”
Cllr Samia Chaudhary, Cabinet Member for Leisure Services at Hounslow Council said:
“We were shocked and saddened to hear of the fire that took place at the Gunnersbury Park Café. Thankfully no one was hurt but the building, which only opened in 2018, has been destroyed.”
“Police and fire crews attended the fire at 1am, and have confirmed there are no injuries. They are still on the scene in order to make the site safe and to investigate the causes of the fire and we thank them for their hard work in managing the fire and site.
“The park is currently closed to visitors, with all gates locked. It is expected it will remain closed for at least 48 hours.
“We will be working closely with the emergency services and our partners at Gunnersbury Park and Ealing Council to ensure that the park is made safe and visitors can return to it as soon as possible.”
Local people are reminded that Gunnersbury Park is currently closed and the gates are locked. It will remain closed for 48 hours (as of 29 May 2020).
