SHOP keepers and landlords in Marlborough have been warned that they have to get up to speed on the risks from fire.

The warning comes from the town's Fire Forum set up in the wake of one of the huge blazes that throughout history have dogged the town centre.

In recent years there have been major blazes in the High Street every five years on average.

It's now almost seven years since the last huge blaze when flames swept through historic wooden framed High Street buildings with the butcher's shop and betting office on the ground floor.

At the latest Fire Forum meeting, held last Wednesday, members agreed there had to be a greater interest from the shops and other commercial premises.

Steve Emery, from English Heritage, said it was vital to get the traders represented on the forum because they were the ones who stood to lose most.

Mr Emery has been involved in a similar scheme in the historic city of Chester to make shopkeepers and their landlords aware of the risks from fire and to encourage them to install better prevention and warning systems.

Mr Emery said: "From our experience in Chester the best way forward is to educate people and to tell them that it is not only their own premises they need to be concerned about.

"If there is a fire next door they could also lose their business for many months or longer."

From experience, said Mr Emery, many businesses affected by fires did not recover at all.

Marlborough fire station commander David Ward said the local fire fighters had visited every premises in the town centre to give fire safety advice and hand out leaflets.

Mr Ward said it was intended to repeat the exercise but to hand out two leaflets at every building; one for the tenant and one that the brigade hoped would eventually reach the landlords.

Wiltshire Fire Brigade fire safety officer Ian Hunter said it had to be pointed out to businesses that in the event of a major fire 35 per cent of firms never recovered.

"For sole traders a big fire can be catastrophic," he said.