Former rock music venue destroyed in Birmingham

A historic building in Birmingham - one where The Beatles once played - has been destroyed by a fire, with arsonists thought to be behind the incident.

The Cash Converters store in Kings Heath used to be the Ritz Ballroom in days gone by, playing host to some of the world's biggest music acts. But Birmingham Post reports that the former rock venue is now badly damaged after the blaze started on Wednesday morning (March 27th), which saw 40 firefighters and fire safety officers attend at its peak. Now, the local fire and rescue association and police will undertake a joint investigation to find out the cause of the fire.

Early indications suggest, however, that it was caused by arsonists.Local roads were closed for up to eight hours while the blaze was tackled, but nobody was hurt in the incident.

Non-domestic premises in England and Wales must have a 'suitable and sufficient' fire risk assessment carried out under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.If the assessment is thought to have been carried out to an insufficient extent, the Responsible Person can face an unlimited fine or up to two years in prison.