Firefighters tackled the blaze as other crews doused neighbouring homes with water to prevent them from going up in flames - as worried homeowners looked on.

Fire ripped through the disused mosque on Vincent Road, Sharrow, just after 6.30pm last night.

One resident said it went up like "a cinder box" and was burning out of control within minutes.

Smoke billowed across the Sheffield skyline as the blaze took hold and flames could be seen for miles around.

Do you have photos of the fire? Email them to staronline@sheffieldnewspapers.co.uk and we'll put them online.

Residents lined the streets and businesses closed as the drama unfolded.

Police had to move onlookers away for their own safety and cordoned off surrounding streets.

A section of Abbeydale Road between Wolseley Road and Chippinghouse Road, Vincent Road, South View Crescent and South View Road were all still closed to traffic this morning.

They were expected to remain closed until building assessors could examine the safety of the charred remains.

Between 20 and 30 homes were evacuated amid fears the fire could spread and because neighbouring properties were filling with smoke. There were also concerns over the stability of the mosque.

Watch manager Des O'Mar, from Sheffield's central fire station, said: "The full building was involved in fire, a building of around 40 metres square, with flames shooting through the roof so we had to get the aerial ladder platforms there.

"We fought the fire defensively from outside because the building was too unsafe for us to enter. We were worried about the possibility of walls collapsing and affecting neighbouring properties so a structural engineer was called to the scene."

At the height of the blaze around 50 firefighters from seven fire engines and two aerial ladder platforms were on the scene tackling the inferno.

Some were still there this morning checking for hot spots to prevent separate smaller fires igniting again under the charred debris and remains of the building.

Elderly and infirm residents were first to be led away from their homes, with most of the evacuees, around 50 people in total, going to stay with relatives.

Residents who had nowhere to go were offered emergency accommodation at a nearby mosque.

Crews from Central, Darnall, Mansfield Road, Edlington, Lowedges, Mosborough and Barnsley fire station were involved in the incident.

The mosque had not been used for some time but used to be a church and is well known for its striking, red brick appearance.

In recent years, applications have been made to transform it into flats and there was scaffolding outside the building.

It is thought the fire started in some roof timbers which had previously collapsed.

Police said today the fire is not thought not be suspicious but a fire service investigation was due to continue this morning.

One eyewitness said: "We could see the flames from the window and it looked quite scary for a while - they were huge.

"Everyone was coming out their houses to see what was going on and you could feel the heat.

"A few properties were evacuated but things calmed down quite quickly and the firefighters seemed to be on top of things. They did a great
job."

Another said: "It is very sad to see the building destroyed - it was a beautiful one. I think it may have been listed. It will never be restored to what it was."

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