Police have called in arson chemists to determine the cause of a fire that took hold of a Keilor East factory this morning.
It took firefighters about two hours to bring the blaze inside a small factory in Thor Court under control.
Emergency services were called to the industrial site just after 4am after a passing motorist alerted them to the fire.
Metropolitan Fire Brigade crews called for more support en route to the fire after seeing smoke and flames a kilometre away from the scene.
The 10-metre by 40-metre factory was well alight at one end when firefighters arrived. The factory was locked so crews were forced to use a disc cutter to gain entry through a roller door.
MFB Commander Guy McCrorie said the fire caused extensive damage to the building as well as heavy machinery such as trucks and excavators that were being stored inside. “There’s a lot of fire damage as well as damage caused by the heat and smoke,” he said.
Commander McCrorie said police have deemed the fire suspicious and have called on forensic chemists and the arson squad to investigate.
Senior Sergeant Danny Travaglini said the fire was being treated as suspicious “until we can prove otherwise”. “We’re waiting for the arson chemists to arrive,” he said.
The factory is owned by industrial drainage contractor Metro Drains.
About 20 Metro Drains staff and contractors waited outside in the cold this morning to find out whether the business would open for the day.
The business installs drains in new housing estates.
