Lodge Mill Fire Devastates Middleton Businesses

0:00On March 30, Lodge Mill, Middleton's oldest surviving mill from around 1850 got gutted by a massive fire early Sunday, March 29. Firefighters battled the blaze for hours before getting it under control, leaving the building as just a hollow shell with nothing inside. The ground floor house several small businesses, like a kids dance studio, ice cream shop, tea room, dog chiropractor, event space for weddings, and... A brand new DJ recording studio. Owners Martin Cove and Paula Hickey had bought the place in 2019 and poured work into renovations, including fresh windows just fitted. Business folks are heartbroken, especially dance studio owner Liv Flanagan, who spot served up to 150 kids from age 2 to 17. She's dealing with crying children and lost pricey gymnastics gear, but they're scrambling for temp space and lost to go fund me amid tons of. Community support. By Monday, greater Manchester fire and rescue scaled back operations to dampen hot spots, though road closures stick around townly street.

1:05Rochdale Council building control teams are on site assessing safety with emergency crews. This spot had bounced back strong after a back mill fire in 2021 and sits near last year's warehouse blaze, but the love poured into it, shows in the vows to rebuild and keep the vibe alive for locals.