Dozens of prisoners at a Wiltshire prison were rescued from a blaze that came a month after wardens received fire safety training.

Prison staff safely moved 40 inmates after a fire broke out in a first floor room of a two-storey building at Erlestoke Prison last week (9 March.) They were moved to another part of the facility.

A call was made to Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service just after 9 am. Around 15 firefighters attended the blaze, using a mechanical fan to clear smoke from the building and a thermal imaging camera to check for fire spread.

The fire service had undertaken a training exercise with the staff at Erlestoke Prison in January this year.

Station manager Darren Nixon, who was in charge of the incident, said: "One of the reasons for carrying out the exercise in January was to allow crews to familiarise themselves with the issues that may arise if there was an emergency situation at the prison. 

"The incident today has allowed us to apply that knowledge to the benefit of all concerned.”

It is believed that the fire started accidentally.