THIS morning dozens of firefighters and police officers rushed to a fire at a Southampton car garage.

The garage is on Old Redbridge Road and an exclusion zone has been set up.

Teams were called to the scene this morning to tackle the blaze.

The incident has caused traffic chaos throughout the area, and some residents had to be evacuated from their homes.

Here is everything we know so far:

The incident

At around 6.40am this morning, emergency services were called to Old Redbridge Road in Southampton following reports of a commercial fire. 

Firefighters on scene are from Redbridge, St Mary’s, Hightown, Fareham, Eastleigh, Beaulieu, Lyndhurst, Hamble, Fleet and Ringwood. 

Daily Echo:

Jenny Underdown

The aerial ladder platform from St Mary’s and Romsey’s environmental protection unit are also in attendance. 

The workshop, measuring 35x by 40m, is used for vehicle repairs and bodywork.

It is 100 per cent damage by the fire, and it was divided into three sections for firefighting. 

What is happening in the area? 

It is understood that 10 people were evacuated from their homes this morning as teams tackled the blaze.

A 200m cordon has been set up by Hampshire Police to keep the area safe. 

Daily Echo:

A Hazmat team from HFRS is currently on the scene. 

A number of roads and routes have been closed around the area to ensure that the public is kept safe.

Traffic chaos 

The fire has caused traffic chaos throughout the area with a number of roads and routes being closed for motorists. 

Redbridge Road, the Redbridge roundabout and the Redbridge flyover were closed outbound, and the Redbridge Causeway was shut in both directions.

All outbound traffic from Southampton was being diverted away from Mountbatten Way.

Since then, all stationary traffic around the area has now dispersed, however road closures remain in place Millbrook Road West to Redbridge Causeway outbound.

The M271 inbound is closed from junction 1, Nursling.

Motorists are being advised to seek alternative routes.