Garage neighbours evacuated after electric van blaze

A witness said the thick black smoke from the blaze was "terrible"

People had to be evacuated from their homes when a fire involving an electric van broke out at a garage.

Firefighters were called to Craig's Motors in Guernsey at about 17:20 BST on Thursday.

No-one was reported to be hurt in the blaze but residents were asked to temporarily leave their homes.

Chief Fire Officer Jon Le Page said he believed it was the first fire on the island to involve an electric vehicle but the cause of the fire was not yet known.

'Little explosions'

On arrival, crews found a fire in the workshop that had burned through the roof and was emitting a large amount of noxious black smoke.

“While it is impossible at this stage to confirm the specific cause of the fire, it is possible to confirm that the lithium-ion battery of the vehicle had become involved in the fire, which created specific challenges for the crews dealing with the incident," said Mr Le Page.

Firefighters were able to get the fire under control and the damage was limited to the roof.

Firefighters brought two tankers because fires involving electric cars need a lot of water to put out

Ruth Rive, who was in the area visiting friends, said she "saw quite a lot of flames in the tree next door".

The 83-year-old said: "The smoke was terrible - it was black and really smelly, gets in your throat."

Mrs Rive added that she had also heard "crackling" and "little explosions".

Guernsey Police said residents of neighbouring properties should avoid touching any material which may have entered their gardens as a result of the fire and to contact Environmental Health if they had concerns about any material found.