A Manchester canal was turned into a giant bubble bath after fire crews tackling a nearby chemical plant blaze saw their water mix with a detergent creating a six foot wall of foam . The Ashton Canal was filled with heavy suds which appeared after a fire at an industrial unit occupied by a drug development company . It is believed that the water used by firefighters to dampen down the flames mixed with the detergent being stored in the burning buildings . Scroll down for video . The Ashton Canal in Manchester , which was turned into a giant bubble bath when fire crews tackled a blaze at a nearby chemical plant . It is believed that the water used by firefighters to dampen down the flames mixed with the detergent being stored in the burning buildings . Three-year-old Jason Kernick looks out of the window of his family 's canal boat as they try to navigate their way through the foam . This then turned into a huge wall of foam when it drained into the canal , which runs in the shadow of Manchester City 's Etihad Stadium . Now the Environment Agency have launched an investigation to assess if the foam has impacted on wildlife after concerns were raised for the safety of fish in the affected waters . A spokesman for the agency said : 'The Environment Agency is investigating after receiving reports of foam on a 30 metre stretch of the Ashton Canal , Manchester . 'Initial investigations by Environment Agency officers show that there appears to have been minimal impact on water quality , but our officers will continue to monitor and respond as necessary . Richard Kernick takes a picture on his mobile phone of his boat trying to negotiate a lock and the foam , which ran into the Ashton Canal . A cyclist takes a picture on his mobile phone as the foam comes up on to the cycle path . The Environment Agency are investigating to assess of the foam has harmed any wildlife . The foam reached as high as six foot in some places and covered a 30 metre stretch along the water in the Clayton area of Manchester . 'We are working with the fire service and taking samples of the foam to understand what it is made of , and what impact it may have on local wildlife in and around the canal . ' At the height of the blaze on Sunday afternoon , which caused the foam , up to 50 firefighters were tackling the fire and police were also forced to wear face masks . Families in east Manchester were urged to say indoors after a blast was reported at the industrial unit , which is just a few hundred yards from the Manchester City training ground on the Etihad campus . The fire at the chemical factory next to Manchester City 's Etihad stadium send a huge plume of smoke across the city on Easter Sunday . Police wearing face masks went around neighbouring streets with loudspeakers urging people to stay inside while the fire raged . Police officers also told children on bikes and mothers pushing prams near the scene to go home and went around neighbouring streets with loudspeakers urging people to stay inside . A huge plume of smoke also turned the sky black and could be seen right across the city and even into Salford . According to Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service , the fire was fueled by wooden pallets and unidentified chemicals but an investigation into the cause of the fire is still ongoing .
The Ashton Canal became filled with heavy suds due to a 6ft wall of foam created by fire crews tackling a blaze . The fire at a nearby chemical plant saw water from fire service mix with detergents that were being stored there . The foam covered a 30 metre stretch of the canal near Clayton Etihad stadium in Manchester City 's .