Emma Pritchard

Fire and Rescue NSW crews from Grafton and South Grafton attended the scene of a fire at Grafton Shoppingworld on the corner of Pound Street and Wiseman Way shortly after 6pm on December 7.

Upon arrival, Grafton Fire and Rescue 306 Station Captain Garry Reardon said the situation looked precarious, and crews quickly set to work to contain the blaze.

A staff member from Grafton Shoppingworld also responded promptly and began hosing the flames in an effort to prevent the fire from spreading.

Captain Reardon said the fire was initially contained from the roadway and no further businesses in Pound Street were affected.

The entire site including Woolworths and Coles temporarily experienced a power outage while the blaze was contained before power was partially restored to areas of the complex not affected by the fire.

The cause of the fire was later identified as an electrical fault in the neon Coles sign above Forty Winks.

Captain Reardon confirmed the letter ‘O’ in Coles caught fire before falling into a smaller room below and subsequently setting fire to stormwater and drainage pipes.

A small section of air conditioning equipment was also damaged by the fire.

After the fire was contained and the area assessed, crews stayed behind and established a temporarily drain to prevent flooding as a result of the persistent wet weather.

Grafton Police and NSW Ambulance Paramedics also attended the scene.

Thankfully, no injuries were reported.

Forty Winks remains closed.