AN explosion blew two walls off a factory in Radcliffe -- seconds before firefighters reached the seat of the blaze.
An electricity sub-station set on fire, sending a ball of flame high into the air and cutting off power to some nearby buildings.
A fire crew was making its way to the far end of Strebor Diecasting, on Hutchinson Way, Radcliffe, when the explosion happened.
They moved in quickly to extinguish the blaze, which had spread to a large, derelict annex in the factory at 9.10pm on Saturday.
Firefighters used an ariel ladder to allow them to shoot water in from the the top of the building.
The blaze was contained to a small corner of the annex -- which measured 80 metres by 30 metres -- by four crews from Bury and Radcliffe using two jets and four breathing apparatus.
No-one was injured. A fire spokesman said: "The explosion sent flames shooting into the air and caused damage to the building.
"The cause of the blaze is being investigated."
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