Apsley: Historic Frogmore Paper Mill closed after visitor centre fire

An historic mechanical paper mill is set to be closed "until further notice" after a "large fire" caused extensive damage to its visitor centre.

Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service dealt with the blaze at the Frogmore Paper Mill in Apsley, near Hemel Hempstead on Saturday.

Crews attended the site at 15:30 GMT following reports of smoke in the area.

In a Facebook post, the mill said it was "assessing the damage to the site and our collection".

The fire and rescue service posted on Twitter on Saturday to say it was "attending a large fire at an industrial unit on Frogmore Road".

Frogmore Paper Mill, which brands itself as the "birthplace of paper's industrial revolution," dates back to 1803 and is still operational.

The fire has damaged the visitor centre and part of the Frogmore Paper Mill site, which is run by the Apsley Paper Trail trust.

In its Facebook post, Frogmore Paper Mill said the mill "will be closed to visitors until further notice".

It added: "Thankfully nobody was injured during the fire, but there has been extensive damage to the Mill's visitor centre.

"We're in the process of assessing the damage to the site and our collection, and we're hopeful that our historic working paper machines have survived."

It added that the mill was working with the police and fire service to try and determine the cause of the fire.

Roads close to the site were closed due to the fire and residents were advised to keep windows shut.

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