FIRE crews have been praised for their hard work after battling a major tyre fire.

The blaze took hold at two adjoining scrapyards in Spencer Road, Lidget Green, just before 11pm on Friday, when flames engulfed 11 scrapped cars and more than 50 tyres.

In all four crews, from Fairweather Green, and Bradford fire stations, attended.

Firefighters had to break into the compound, where five cars from one scrapyard, six from a neighbouring yard and a row of tyres between them were all ablaze, sending out large plumes of acrid smoke.

The police closed Spencer Road to traffic for safety reasons as firefighters tackled the flames.

Fairweather Green fire station watch commander Roger Binns said the tyre fire had been "very unpleasant" to deal with and praised the crews.

He said: "Tyre fires are very hard to put out. Once we have knocked the flames back, we have to get them out and put more water on them because they tend to smoulder.

"The crews were extremely dirty at the end of it all. It was a very messy job."

He said they had also had to be very careful around the scrap cars in case there were fuels like liquid petroleum gas present.

Mr Binns said crews had managed to prevent a nearby building from going up in flames.

But he said if the fire service had received the call ten to 15 minutes later, it "would have been a different tale".

The cause of the fire is under investigation.