Cylinders explode at farm buildings fire

The fire had taken hold of a large open-sided barn, a wooden outbuilding and a number of smaller buildings and containers

Gas cylinders have exploded as crews tackled a fire that spread to several farm buildings and destroyed vehicles.

Crews were called to Little Hallingbury, Essex, on the Hertfordshire border near Bishop's Stortford, at about 03:30 BST.

They prevented the fire from spreading to a nearby thatched house and stable block, with horses inside, which were unharmed.

Station manager Lee Hurst described it as a challenging incident to bring under control" with crews "met with a well-developed fire and very limited water supply".

"Crews also had to contend with a number of gas cylinders inside the burning buildings, some of which exploded due to the intense heat," he added.

Additional crews, including from Hertfordshire, helped tackle the fire.

Water bowsers, which are large vehicles carrying significant amounts of water, were brought in to provide a sufficient water supply.

Essex County Fire and Rescue Service said the cause of the fire was unknown.