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Staggering drone footage shows extent of 'once in a decade' inferno
Drone footage has revealed the extent of the destruction a massive inferno caused when it tore through two abandoned heritage-listed buildings in central Sydney.
The NSW Fire and Rescue vision looks down into the Randle Street building, showing the hollowed out property after the blaze which started just after 4pm in Surry Hills yesterday.
A heat image shows parts of the buildings walls are still warm more than 12 hours after the blaze ignited, and a highest priority 10th alarm was raised.
READ MORE: Two 13-year-olds assisting police after fire gutted two buildings in central Sydney
Windows of the adjacent apartment buildings were shattered by the heat, with multiple office floors littered with debris and exploded wine bottles, which were sitting on a window ledge.
The street below is covered in a carpet of bricks, completely surrounding a ute parked beneath.
Dashcam footage of firefighters rushing to the scene shows plumes of smoke billowing above buildings in Surry Hills, near Central Station.
Two 13-year-olds have come forward to police after the arson squad began investigating the blaze.
NSW Police are waiting for others to come forward.
More than 120 firefighters and 30 fire trucks from multiple stations across Sydney battled the blaze.
READ MORE: Sydney building meant to be new hotel
Acting assistant commissioner Paul Dunstan described the inferno as a "once in decade type of fire".
The building had been vacant for about 12 months while deconstruction work was taking place.
It was a 100-year-old building made out of dry timber that was the "perfect set of conditions for an intense fire".
It was due to be converted into a new hotel, according to a development proposal made in 2019.
Some residents are still evacuated and diversions are still in place around the buildings.
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