Belfast Primark fire in pictures: Plumes of black smoke billows across Belfast
A MAJOR blaze has broken out at a Primark store in Belfast city centre. Here are the latest pictures from the Primark store fire in Northern Ireland.
Belfast fire: Smoke billows from roof of Primark
The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) is currently in attendance at the scene.
Shoppers and staff were evacuated from the historic five-storey building at around 11am on Tuesday.
Dramatic pictures show huge plumes of black smoke and flames could be seen coming from the roof of the Bank Buildings, which is home to the Primark store.
Other images show the smoke billowing right across Belfast.
The store had recently undergone refurbishment.
In a statement, a spokeswoman for the NIFRS said: "NIFRS received a call at 11am today to a fire on the top floor of the Primark building - a five-storey commercial property in the Castle Street area of Belfast.
There were no initial reports of injuries, but that has s yet to be confirmed by the authorities.
A spokesman for Primark said that the fire alarm did activate.
In a statement, he said: "Our Belfast store on Castle Street was safely evacuated this morning (Tuesday) following a fire on the roof.
"Fire services are attending the scene and working to extinguish the fire."
Customers described smelling smoke inside the store before being told by staff to leave the building.
Loud bangs could be heard coming from the fire while large pieces of debris were seen falling from the building.
The fire service has said the incident is likely to continue throughout he rest of the day. Around 80 firefighters are currently battling the blaze.
Residents and businesses are being advised to keep their windows and doors shut as a precautionary measure.
Werner Schiffelers, a tour guide from the Netherlands, is staying in .
He was waiting on his guests returning from a tour of Titanic when he saw the fire.
The worldwide traveller said he has "never seen a fire like this".
"We have to see if we can sleep in our hotel at the Ramada or not tonight, that is the big question," he added.
"About 30 minutes ago it was almost out - only the roof was on fire, but now the complete building has gone.
"We were just here three hours ago when it started and now it is gone."