A Cancer Research facility at a hospital in Manchester has caught fire.
Pictures from the scene showed a huge plume of smoke billowing from the Christie Hospital in Withington on Wednesday morning after the blaze began around 10.35am.
The Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute, a leading cancer research institute within The University of Manchester, does not house patients but is attached to the main hospital.
The building, formerly known as the Paterson Building, has been evacuated. There are no reports of injures.
According to the BBC the fire, on Wilmslow Road, involves the first floor plant room and roof space.
Five fire engines are at the scene and an aerial platform is being used to help tackle the blaze, the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Services said.
Sections of Wilmslow Road and Cotton Lane have been closed and the research building, which houses a number of laboratories, has been cleared.
The Christie is the cancer hospital for most of the North and part of the Midlands and treats about 40,000 patients a year.
Christie Hospital said the site remains open for patients recieving treatment.
A spokesman added to The Express: “There has been a fire on The Paterson Institute roof. All the associated areas have been evacuated including any patient areas. All patients and staff are safe. The fire service is on site.
“For staff and patients if they have not already been evacuated they need to carry on as normal. Any patients who are attending for treatment need to attend as normal and access the hospital via the Palatine Road entrance.
“Patients should park in the multi-storey car park off Palatine Road.”
The fire service said firefighter were “wearing breathing apparatus and using jets and hose reels to extinguish a fire involving a three-storey office block and labs”.