Moorebank factory fire, 100 staff evacuated from Goodman Fielder bread manufacturing site

It was a dangerously close call for 100 staff in a bread factory who had to quickly flee after flames engulfed the site in Sydney’s southwest.

A major bread factory in southwest Sydney was engulfed in flames overnight with 100 staff evacuating just moments before fire and smoke consumed the site.
The factory, owned by Goodman Fielder, manufactures bread sold as Helga’s, Mighty Soft, and the Coles label.

More than 70 firefighters and 18 fire trucks responded to the blaze, believed to have started in a oven, about 9.45pm on Wednesday.

Moorebank factory fire. Photo: NSW Fire & Rescue

Firefighters were alerted to the fire by an automatic fire alarm and fought the blaze for three hours, with flames and smokes seen across the suburb.

About 100 workers were evacuated from the factory just moments before the blaze took hold, with no injuries reported.

Today, the factory was empty, loaves of unbaked bread visible on conveyer belts, and pallet after pallet of bread left behind, never to be shipped.
Air filters could be seen dripping water and ash on the outside of the building.

As the fire took hold, Hazmat crews monitored the impact of the smoke and put in place measures to prevent water run-off into nearby streams.

Fire and Rescue NSW superintendent Adam Dewberry said the incident was a timely reminder that calling triple-0 (000) could be the difference between life and death, or a building being saved or destroyed.

A more detailed investigation of the cause of the fire will be carried out by Fire and Rescue.
Goodman Fielder was contacted by the Liverpool Leader, but did not respond prior to publishing.