Trial over Crewe's Beechmere retirement complex fire collapses
Beechmere retirement village was destroyed in the fire on 8 August 2019
A trial into alleged breaches of fire safety regulations by four companies in Cheshire has collapsed, with formal not guilty verdicts entered against six companies involved.
Beechmere retirement village in Crewe, which housed about 150 residents, was destroyed by a fire on 8 August 2019.
Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service initially pursued six firms, but action against two of them was subsequently dropped.
The trial against the remaining four began on Tuesday, but the fire service said it had "regrettably" decided to withdraw its prosecutions.
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