Fire officers are continuing to investigate the cause of the fire which damaged shops and businesses in Douglas this morning (Tuesday).

The blaze broke out in offices above TOPSHOP, on the corner of Duke Street and Lord Street, at around 3.30am.

Fire crews were there for more than four hours, and Lord Street was closed for a time during the rush hour.

The offices of accountancy firm Baker Tilly were damaged by the blaze and there was serious smoke damage to nearby premises including the Co-op and TOPSHOP.

Operations manager for the Co-op on the Island Andrew Gorrie says the Duke Street store will be closed for the next few days (first part of audio file):

Bill Bennett is a director of ECS International, whose offices were at the heart of the fire.

He says staff have moved to an alternative office in Bucks Road, as part of the firm's disaster recovery plan (second part of audio file):