Gala Bingo Arson Attack

In what is suspected to be an arson attack, a massive fire raged through what was once a Gala Bingo club located in the Kings Heath High Street in Birmingham. The building had been erected in the 1920s.

Over 50 fire fighters were involved in tacking the flames and nearby roads were closed. A number of apartments close to the building were evacuated as they were engulfed in huge plumes of smoke. A local councillor who was an eyewitness to the attempts to fight the blaze had earlier been woken by the smell of smoke. The fire was first spotted at 6.30 am and a 999 call was made.

Despite the best efforts of the fire fighters it proved impossible to tame the flames before the roof of the building collapsed. Fortunately none of the firemen were inside the building at the time and there have been no reports of injuries.

A spokesman from the West Midlands Fire Service made a statement that indicated that the origin of the fire was been treated as suspicious although at this juncture it could not be conferment that it was arson. Police and the fire service are currently investigating the causes of the fire.

The Gala Bingo club was closed down in 2007 after serving local bingo players for around 20 years. The closure was one of several forced upon Gala Bingo by the declining interest in playing Bingo at live clubs which had, at least in part, been a result of the ban on smoking in clubs.

Before being converted by Gala, which is part of the Coral Group, the building had been a cinema. Before the fire there had been plans to turn the building into a restaurant and a conference centre. The main Gala Bingo club in Birmingham is now located on Streetly Road.