Henley College fire 'frightens' locals as they watch fire tear through building

Locals were left stunned and frightened as flames tore through Henley College. One told CoventryLive that they have 'never seen anything like it'. Many witnessed the huge blaze as it started to tear through the old college building at around 7.

30pm last night (April 29). The first fire crews arrived at the scene within three minutes but, due to the severity of the fire, back-up was needed. At its height, there were 75 firefighters at the college from across the city and neighbouring Warwickshire and Birmingham.



As they battled to stop the fire, a cloud of thick, acrid smoke filled the sky above the city and could be seen for miles. It was a sight that left one local, who did not want to be named, frightened. They told us: "It was horrendous.

It went on for hours and hours. There was so much black smoke. It was frightening.

" READ MORE: Heartbroken mum of horror Warwickshire crash victim issues four word plea to government READ MORE: Crucial Warwickshire County Council elections 2025 - all you need to know Another said. "I sit out the front and watch the sun set most evenings over the college. All of a sudden it got dead cloudy.

"Then I saw the flames. People were out here watching for hours. I've never seen anything like it.

" The fire could be seen for miles around. One resident of Barnacle, a village more than three miles away from the scene reported seeing huge plumes of smoke in the sky last night. They expressed their shock at seeing the Coventry institution burn, saying 'the whole place was up.

" Crews still remain at the scene, more than 12 hours after the initial 999 calls. For the latest from the college site as well as the emergency services, visit our liveblog here.