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A Christmas Eve fire above a political party’s constituency office has left it wrecked, as it gears up for May’s Assembly elections.

The Plaid Cymru office on High Street, Bangor , shared by Arfon MP Hywel Williams and his Assembly counterpart Alun Ffred Jones AM, was flooded after the accidental blaze in a flat above.

Water used to dampen the fire, which occurred around 3.20am and was caused by cooking being left unattended, soaked the office and caused the collapse of the floor above.

One man living in the flat was rescued by firefighters and taken to Ysbyty Gwynedd with minor injuries.

Mr Jones said: “The fire caused extensive damage to the flat and water has flooded the downstairs offices and damaged equipment and furnishing.

(Image: Arwyn Roberts)

“There is no way we can use the premises for the coming weeks and we will make alternative arrangements to meet the people from Bangor in the city.”

The kitchen of the flat was destroyed in the blaze which took two appliances and firefighters with breathing apparatus to control.

A party spokesman said the offices will be out of use for some weeks but it would not stop the day to day business of either representative.

The damage was only discovered last week as party workers returned from their Christmas break and now they will have to wait for insurance assessors to survey the damage before refurbishment work can continue.

“It’s busy enough with the election campaign for the Welsh Assembly,” said a Plaid spokesman.

“The surgeries will carry on in Bangor but we will just have to see how long it takes to re-open the office.

“We are just not sure what is going to happen.”

The spokesman said it could be some time before assessors sort out the problem, ironically because of a busy workload after the floods which blighted the area over Christmas and New Year.

They will know more about the fate of their office after meeting with their insurers next week.

(Image: Arwyn Roberts)

Meanwhile MP Hywel Williams said constituents could still contact the party’s Caernarfon office.

“The phone line (at the Bangor office) is obviously out of commission and we would advise people to contact the office staff on the Caernarfon number 01286 672076, or by email, and we will make suitable arrangements,” he said.

“There will be regular surgeries at places such as the Coed Mawr Community Centre and elsewhere.

"We are sorry for the inconvenience and will have the High Street office up and running as soon as possible.”

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