Firefighters have extinguished a blaze that broke out at Wednesday night at Warner Bros’ studio in Leavesden, England, which disrupted production on HBO’s upcoming comedy “Avenue 5.”
“The Chief Fire Officer has confirmed that the fire which occurred on one of our sound stages, being used by the television production ‘Avenue 5,’ has been fully extinguished,” the studio said in a statement. “Our principal concern is always people’s safety and we would like to thank Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Services for all their hard work in containing the situation. All productions were able to continue working and the Studio Tour was unaffected.”
In a statement of his own, “Avenue 5” creator Armando Iannuci said the first season is “near completion and everyone is determined to carry on.” HBO added in a statement of its own that “Production continues as the producers and writers assess the best plan to complete filming of the final two episodes of the series.” The network does not believe that the fire will change the show’s production timeline.
As of Thursday morning, crews had been tackling the fire for 12 hours, according to local newspaper, the Watford Observer. “Eighteen fire engines and support vehicles, are currently at the scene as crews continue to tackle the fire. Three jets and one aerial ladder platform are in use,” a spokesperson for Hertfordshire County Council told the paper at 10.30 a.m. BST.
“The set was not being used at the time of the fire. There are no injuries,” a council spokesperson added.
All eight of the “Harry Potter” films, along with movies from the James Bond, “Fast and Furious” and the “Mission Impossible” franchises have been filmed at the studios.
The location, which is around 20 miles from central London, is also home to a public studio tour about the making of the Harry Potter movies and Wizarding World. The studio was unaffected.
Tony Maglio contributed to this story.