Fire-struck Walthamstow Waterstones reopens

Walthamstow Waterstones has reopened almost six weeks after sustaining a "minimal amount of damage" in a huge blaze across an east London shopping centre.

The store opened on Wednesday (4th September) after being closed since 22nd July when a fire struck The Mall in Walthamstow. Around 150 firefighters and 25 fire engines attended the scene in Selborne Walk. No one was injured in the fire.

Staff at the two-storey Waterstones branch have been working at other stores while The Mall team attempt a phased reopening of the centre. All the shops were closed for a number of weeks but now a phased reopening has begun, with around 20 stores now open including Waterstones.

A Waterstones spokesperson said of the reopening: "Sadly some shops in the shopping centre remain closed but thankfully our bookshop only suffered minimal damage and just required a light amount of clean-up work. We are delighted to be back to selling books in E17."

Waterstones Walthamstow tweeted: "Thank you to the many friends who have already called in. We still have chocolates… A big thank you to all today's customers! We've had a really busy day and enjoyed catching up with you all."

The retailer's m.d. James Daunt said in July of the fire and closure: “It’s unfortunate because the store is doing really well in an area which is really rejuvenated.. A situation like this is extremely unusual."

The cause of the fire is currently unknown.