Fires which tore through two derelict pubs just streets away from each other in south London are treated as suspicious by police

Police confirmed today they are treating fires which ripped through two derelict pubs less than 200 yards away from each other as suspicious.  

The former Windmill and Drum & Monkey pubs in Croydon were both alight, with the first blaze having begun at 5.30am and the second starting around 15 minutes later.

The London Fire Brigade sent a total of 14 fire engines and 100 firefighters to the blazes on St James’s Road and Gloucester Road and told people to ‘avoid the area’.

Both pubs have been put on the market in recent years, with the Drum & Monkey under offer at £650,000 and the Windmill going up for sale for £1.5milion in 2021. 

Fire crews said the second floor and the roof of the Windmill were both destroyed, resulting in the roof collapsing. The first and second floors of the Drum & Monkey were also destroyed, but there were no reports of any injuries at either blaze. 

The Met Police said this afternoon it was treating the fires as suspicious. No arrests have been made.

A spokesman said: ‘At around 05:44hrs on Thursday 31 August officers were called to support on a fire that had taken place in a derelict pub on St James Road in Croydon.

‘Officers attended the scene, and put police cordons into place, whilst the London Fire Brigade (LFB) extinguished the fire.

‘At around 06:24hrs officers were called to support on another fire that had taken place in a derelict pub on Gloucester road in Croydon.

‘The fire, on Gloucester Road was under control by 07:29hrs, and the fire on St James Road was under control by 08:35hrs.

‘The fires are being treated as suspicious and a joint investigation is being led between the Met and the London Fire Brigade.

‘There have been no reports of injuries on any of the scenes. At this early stage there have been no arrests.

‘Anyone who witnessed this incident or has footage should call police on 101 or Tweet @MetCC quoting 1051/31AUG.

‘To remain 100% anonymous call the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or visit Crimestoppers-uk.org.’

Both pubs have been bought by property companies in recent years – The Drum and Monkey by Epsilon Developments Limited in July 2020 for £525,000, and IGC land Holdings Limited owns the Windmill Pub, bought in September 2022 for £1.35m plus VAT.

IGC Land Holdings has directors who have companies with property worth just over £12 million. It is run by Guy Avital, 40, and Isaac Itamar Cohen, 41, who lives in the UAE.

Epsilon Developments Limited’s directors are Nabil Bkakil, 60, and George Prinos, 58, an architectural engineer, who is a Greek national.

The company – registered address at an accountants in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire – is in £8,279 in the red as of last accounts in November 2021.

Mr Bkakil has other companies Nabilius Management – with assets of £39,906, and Nabilius Properties with assets of around £100,000.

Mr Prinos has a company called Kappa Construction with assets of £70,000 and Kappa planning with assets of almost £250,000.

Nik Antona, chairman of the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra), told MailOnline: ‘The licensed trade is being hit by the perfect storm of rising costs of goods and employing staff, government help with energy bills being cut, and customers continuing to tighten their belts due to the cost-of-living crisis.

‘As a result, we are seeing too many pubs close every year, so it is truly devastating to see the destruction of the Windmill and the Drum & Monkey pubs in Croydon. 

‘Where possible we always want to see closed pubs restored so they can once again become a vital and important part of local communities.

‘Camra is always concerned when pubs could be lost to the communities they serve, be it through demolition or conversion. 

‘It is vital that pubs are always marketed as going concerns and everything possible is done to secure their future as community pubs – including giving existing licensees and the local community first refusal of buying their pub.’

The fires caused traffic chaos in the morning rush hour, with road closures diverting the 289 bus and affecting those heading to West and East Croydon rail stations.

Videos filmed by Kris Rybak showed the extent of the blazes. He said one of the fires was eventually brought under control, but the second one was ‘spreading fast’.

Mr Rybak – who posted the clips and photographs on X, formerly known as Twitter – added that there was a ‘huge backlog of firetrucks stuck behind the traffic’.

Another social media user added: ‘A couple of fire engines and an officer in a car passed through South Norwood an hour or so ago, obviously en route to these fires.’

The A222 St James’s Road was closed between Sydenham Rd and Windmill Bridge this morning while emergency services tackled the fires, reported MyLondon.

Relating to the fire at the Windmill, the London Fire Brigade (LFB) said in a statement issued at 8.30am: ‘Eight fire engines and around 60 firefighters are responding to a fire in a derelict pub on St James’s Road, Croydon.

‘The fire is in a derelict pub and the roof is partly alight. One of the brigade’s turntable ladders is being used to fight the fire from above.

‘Traffic in the surrounding area is expected to be congested whilst we respond. The brigade was first called at 5.44am and crews from Woodside, Croydon, Forest Hill and surrounding fire stations are at the scene. The cause of the fire is not yet known.’

The LFB then issued a second statement at 9.20am regarding the Drum & Monkey fire, saying: ‘Six fire engines and around 40 firefighters tackled a fire at a derelict pub on Gloucester Road in Croydon.

‘The whole of the first and second floors of the building were destroyed by fire. There were no reports of any injuries.

‘The Brigade’s 999 Control Officers used 999Eye to live stream the blaze from a smart phone to screens in the control room, allowing for greater visibility of the incident.

‘When a 999 call is received by the Brigade, the caller may be asked if they would like to provide a live video stream of the scene using their smartphone. 

‘The control officer will send a text message with a secure, one-time-use link that opens a live stream direct from the phone to the control room. 999Eye provides better situational awareness and allows us to offer the best advice based on live footage.

‘The brigade was called at 6.24am and the fire was under control by 7.29am. Fire crews from Addington, Tooting, Purley, Forest Hill and Bromley fire stations attended the scene. The cause of the fire is under investigation.’

A second statement from the LFB about the Windmill fire was then also issued at 9.30am, saying: ‘Eight fire engines and around 60 firefighters tackled a fire in a derelict pub on St James’s Road in Croydon.

‘The whole of the second floor and the roof of the building were destroyed by fire, resulting in a roof collapse. There were no reports of any injuries.

‘One of the Brigade’s 32-metre turntable ladders was used as a water tower to tackle the fire from above. The Brigade’s 999 control officers took ten calls to the blaze.

‘The Brigade was called at 5.44am and the fire was under control by 8.35am. Fire crews from Woodside, Croydon, Forest Hill and surrounding fire stations were at the scene. The cause of the fire is under investigation.’

Earlier, the LFB posted on X at about 7.30am: ‘We’re currently at the scene of two separate building fires in St James’s Road and Gloucester Road in Croydon. Several fire engines are in attendance at both incidents. Please avoid the area.’

The LFB Croydon account added: ‘Please avoid St James Road and Gloucester Road due to two fires in close proximity. We will be providing residents and businesses risk specific advice and reassurance as part of a post fire community engagement plan.’

London Ambulance Service confirmed it had ‘a number of resources on scene, and would ask people to avoid the area’, adding: ‘There were no patients reported.’

The Metropolitan Police declined to issue a statement when contacted by MailOnline this morning, but a spokesman confirmed no arrests have been made.

The Drum & Monkey is currently under offer after being listed for sale at £650,000 with commercial agent Whozoo, which MailOnline has contacted for comment.

The site was listed on the NovaLoca website as a ‘pub with planning potential’, with the description saying it is a ‘two-storey building’ which ‘provides a large ground floor bar area along with stairs which access the upper floors of the building’. 

The listing added: ‘At the rear of the property there are three single storey structures in which one had a residential use. The property currently sits vacant.’

Last December, a planning application was submitted for rear outbuildings to be demolished and a two-storey rear extension and roof extension built to provide four flats and retain the pub on the ground floor. The outcome of this is pending.

As for the Windmill, there is thought to have been a pub on the site since 1811 – and the current property was put up for sale for £1.5million in January 2021.

However it has remained derelict – and has been broken into multiple times by people using it for parties, according to Croydon Central’s Labour MP Sarah Jones.

Speaking in April, she added that there was ‘illegal activity’ going on but confirmed the site had since been secured by new owners who boarded up the building.

However, there has been no progress on redeveloping the pub – which served traditional Indian food before it shut – with no plans submitted to Croydon Council.

Paul Jeffery, interim head of listing at Historic England, said on X this morning: ‘Another fire in a disused pub. One of two fires this morning in Croydon, apparently starting within minutes of each other and located a short distance apart.’ 

Another X user called Imogen wrote: ‘What did I sleep through? Wake up and whole street full of fire brigade, police and ambulance. Hope no serious injuries. Never dull on St James’s Road in Croydon.’ 

It comes after Britain’s beloved ‘wonkiest’ pub the Crooked House in Himley, West Midlands, mysteriously burnt down on August 5, just two weeks after it was sold.

Firefighters were called but could not get appliances close to the building because mounds of dirt were blocking an access lane. Less than two days later, the burnt remains were bulldozed without the correct permissions from the local council.